Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania — release date and more

Paul Rudd, Kathryn Newton and Evangeline Lilly in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Image credit: Marvel)

After being well established in two previous outings and a key role in Avengers: Endgame, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is set to kick off MCU Phase 5. While the previous two Ant-Man and the Wasp movies were fairly smaller, stand-alone adventures featuring Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly, Quantumania is expected to forever impact the MCU with the inclusion of the new, eagerly anticipated big bad — Kang the Conqueror.

But who is Kang? What does he have to do with Scott Lang or the Van Dynes? We explore the answers to all of these questions and more right here.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania release date

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is officially scheduled for release globally on February 17, 2023.

Like most of Marvel Studios’ post-Infinity Saga release dates, Quantumania was impacted by the pandemic, and has since shifted around the MCU release schedule multiple times. It was originally set for 2022 before finally landing on this early 2023 date.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania plot

Marvel has released an official plot synopsis for the latest Ant-Man and the Wasp movie, give it a read right here:

"Super-Hero partners Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. Together, with Hope’s parents Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne, the family finds themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought was possible."

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania trailer

Marvel has teased us with a fresh look at Quantumania in a new trailer. There's even more trippy visuals from the Quantum Realm on display, a tense battle with Kang, and a brief glimpse at Corey Stoll as MODOK (which, cheerily, stands for Mental Organism Designed Only For Killing). Check it out here:

The official trailer for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is here (rejoice Marvel fans). Using the classic Elton John song "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," the trailer takes viewers into the Quantum realm, where Scott, Hope and everyone else must navigate their way home, and a questionable ally offers to do just that. Check out the trailer below:

Also take a behind-the-scenes look at the latest Marvel movie, which includes a couple of new clips.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania cast

Evangeline Lilly and Paul Rudd in Ant-Man and the Wasp (Image credit: Marvel)

Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly are of course returning as Scott Lang/Ant-Man and Hope Van Dyne/The Wasp. While Scott is enjoying his heroic success, Lilly has stated at Comic-Con that Quantumania dives more into her vulnerabilities as a character, after having been a beacon of strength in all of her previous appearances.

Kathryn Newton (Freaky, Pokemon: Detective Pikachu) takes over the role of Cassie Lang, who was previously played by Abby Ryder Fortson in the previous two films and Emma Fuhrman in Avengers: Endgame. It’s rumored that Cassie dons the Stature suit in this film.

Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer return as Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne. Pfeiffer in particular is a welcome presence, given she did not receive much screen time in the second film or Avengers: Endgame (apart from a single shot during the Stark funeral scene in that movie). Getting answers regarding how she received the Quantum Energy abilities we see her using on Ghost at the end of Ant-Man and the Wasp are in order.

It was also confirmed Randall Park is returning as Jimmy Woo. Woo was introduced in Ant-Man and the Wasp, but also reprised his role during WandaVision. Perhaps he and Scott finally get that dinner.

Bill Murray is also in the movie. His presence has been confirmed in the trailers and it seems as if he’s an old acquaintance of Janet’s from within the Quantum Realm. How they know each other however is currently still unknown.

And finally, Jonathan Majors is playing the next major villain for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Kang the Conqueror. We know Majors portrayed Kang’s variant, He Who Remains, in Loki, but as that version of the character explained, his variants are supposed to be much worse. How much worse? Let’s just put it this way: the next Avengers film, set to debut in May 2025 is called Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. We think Scott Lang is going to have a pretty hard time dealing with this guy.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania reviews — what the critics are saying

What's the word from critics on the latest Marvel movie? What to Watch's own Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania review called the beginning of the MCU's Phase 5 a rocky start, but praised the performances of Marvel newcomers Jonathan Majors and Kathryn Newton.

The general consensus, per Rotten Tomatoes, has the movie teetering on the border of "Fresh" and "Rotten." As of 3 pm ET on February 14, Quantumania has an official score of 60%.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania director

Peyton Reed is returning to direct Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, having previously directed the first two Ant-Man movies. Originally known as the director of Bring it On, Reed has recently found success in genre with both the Ant-Man and the Wasp saga and several episodes of The Mandalorian (including the massively well received season 2 finale).

Since the dawn of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it has been rare for any director to stay with a particular solo-franchise after two films. Jon Favreau gave up directorial responsibilities after Iron Man 2. Scott Derrickson left Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Thor has seen a revolving door of directors (though Taika Waititi has directed the last two). Reed is, surprisingly, only the second director to complete a trilogy for the MCU (the first being Jon Watts of the Spider-Man/Tom Holland trilogy).

How will Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania impact the MCU?

Monumentally. As previously stated, this movie is going to introduce Kang the Conqueror. Everything that happens with Kang is going to lead up to 2025’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and likely Avengers: Secret Wars; the cappers to the entire Multiverse Saga. But it all has to start with the events of Quantumania first, which is why Feige has explicitly chosen this film to be the official kick off of Phase 5.

MCU films

The Marvel Cinematic Universe began in 2008 but just keeps chugging along. Here are all of the movies that make up the MCU, including the already announced movies coming down the road:

MCU Phase 1

MCU Phase 2

MCU Phase 3

MCU Phase 4

MCU Phase 5

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (February 17, 2023)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (May 5, 2023)
The Marvels (July 28, 2023)
Blade (November 3, 2023)
Captain America: New World Order (May 3, 2024)
Thunderbolts (July 26, 2024)

MCU Phase 6

Fantastic Four (November 8, 2024)
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (May 2, 2025)
Avengers: Secret Wars (November 7, 2025)

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania poster — (Image credit: Marvel)

Mike is a proud, sarcastic nerd with a penchant for comic books, comic book movies, and movies in general, and occasional delusions of grandeur. He's also a UC Berkeley graduate who decided to go into writing over pre-med because he figured he'd ultimately save more lives by not being a doctor. He's a Slytherin and a Pisces, so he's very emotionally sensitive, yet also evil, but can be defeated by exploiting his insecurities. His goal is to live one hell of a unique life, and it's been working so far! His proudest moments are being retweeted by James Gunn and Ryan Reynolds in the same week, and getting 999,999 points on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters at Disneyland.

You can find Mike's writing around the web at publications like The Nerds of Color, What to Watch, Spoiler Free Reviews, and That's It LA.