Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will feature a classic Guardians of the Galaxy weapon, if a newly released still is anything to go by.

The still comes courtesy of the latest issue of Empire magazine. It shows Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) wielding what looks like a quad blaster, the same type of gun favored by Guardians of the Galaxy team leader Star-Lord throughout his various Marvel Cinematic Universe appearances. Close inspection of the still suggests that Pym's quad-blaster is a different model from Star-Lord's, though. Unlike Star-Lord's quad-blaster, Pym's gun has a smaller top barrel and bigger bottom barrel, and it lacks any visible triggers or trigger guards.

It's unclear where Pym procured his quad-blaster, however, it's possible he picked it up in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania's Quantum Realm setting. The former Ant-Man will find himself in the microscopic dimension along with his successor Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), wife Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), daughter Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), and Scott's daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton). Despite the dangers this journey poses to the quintet, screenwriter Jeff Loveness talked up the Quantum Realm's more positive qualities in a recent interview. "It's a fun place," Loveness said. "It's a limitless place of creation and diversity and alien life. It's Jodorowsky's Dune within Marvel."

Ant-Man 3 Screenwriter On Pitching the Movie

In the same interview, Loveness recalled the original brainstorming session for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. The scribe noted that this meeting yielded the basic pitch for the sequel, which was "What if Ant-Man is accidentally in an Avengers movie by himself?" This idea resonated with director Peyton Reed, who previously revealed that he lobbied Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige to make the third Ant-Man installment more high-stakes than its predecessors. "For this third one, I said, 'I don't want to be the palate cleanser anymore. I want to be the big Avengers movie,'" Reed said.

Reed ultimately got his wish, and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will launch Phase Five of the MCU. The film will also introduce the shared universe's new overarching antagonist, Kang the Conqueror. Kang actor Jonathan Majors recently hyped the supervillain's arrival, describing him as unlike any of the MCU baddies that came before him. "Kang adds tonal diversity, real conflict and real friction," Majors said. "You're being introduced to a new vibration in the MCU. There's conflict -- not just mano-a-mano, not just hero and villain, but 'your way of life' and 'my way of life.'"

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania arrives in theaters on Feb. 17, 2023.

Source: Empire

UPDATED TIMING: After weeks of waiting, fans finally have a good idea of when exactly the next Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania trailer will debut tonight during the college football National Championship game. 

Ant-Man 3 is mere weeks away, and the super-powered MCU marketing machine going full steam ahead as the Paul Rudd-led sequel looks to open up the Quantum Realm for the world to see. 

After seeing the film's first official trailer in late October 2022, another look at the blockbuster has been in the cards for a while now. A recent announcement from Disney revealed that a second look at the movie would come during the National College Football Championship game on Monday, January 9, but no specific time was given for its arrival.

Now, however, it seems that those eager to see Quantumania's latest should know when to tune in. 

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania Trailer Time

According to a recent Patreon post by known insider Daniel Richtman, who has a strong track record with trailer release scoops, the next Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania trailer will debut after the third quarter of Monday night's National Championship Game on ESPN. 

So then when exactly will Ant-Man 3's trailer debut? Since the game starts at 7:30 pm ET and will run approximately 3 hours and 45 minutes in total (the average game length of a modern-day college football bowl game), the third quarter is likely to start around 9:30 pm ET and end at roughly 10:15 pm ET. 

As such, it's reasonable for fans to expect Quantumania's trailer to debut between 10:00 pm ET and 11:00 pm ET on Monday night if, in fact, it plays at the end of the third quarter. 

UPDATE: The third quarter of the National Championship has begun. Based on the lengths of the previous quarters of this game, we can expect the Ant-Man 3 trailer to debut at approximately 10:30 pm ET.

Marvel source BSL on Twitter has also indicated that the trailer will debut at 10:30 EST.

Marvel also has no control over the timing of this trailer release. When it comes to advertising during live sports, clients buy a slot within the game, not a specific time. This means - if Richtman's report is true - the trailer will debut at the close of 3rd quarter and not any time sooner. 

From there, the sneak peek will surely be available to watch online as is the case with nearly every other Marvel Studios trailer shown off in this way. 

For now, all fans can do is wait, as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is set to hit theaters on February 17. 

The runtime for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a first for the MCU's Ant-Man franchise. 

But that's not the only way Ant-Man 3 is breaking the mold. 

Starring Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, and newcomer Kathyrn Newton as Cassie Lang, Quantumania isn't just launching Phase 5 of the MCU but also ushering in the Multiverse Saga's big bad, Kang the Conqueror. 

For such a different and high-stakes film, it makes sense for its length to be a departure as well. And now, fans have official confirmation on just how long Quantumania will be. 

How Long Is Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania?

Fandango has listed Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania's runtime at 2 hours and 5 minutes which is a new record for the Ant-Man franchise. 

Marvel Studios' original Ant-Man from 2015 had a runtime of 1 hour and 57 minutes while 2018's Ant-Man and the Wasp spanned 1 hour and 58 minutes. 

This appears to be a trend with MCU threequels which typically skew longer than their sequels and original films.

Iron Man and Iron Man 2's runtimes were topped by Iron Man 3 at 2 hours and 10 minutes. The Captain America films followed suit as evidenced by Captain America: Civil War's 2 hours and 27 runtime. 

The same applies to Avengers: Infinity War, Thor: Ragnarok, and Spider-Man: No Way Home, all of which were longer than their franchise's previous films. 

For comparison, the following is a list of runtimes of the latest MCU films from 2022:

• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness: 2 hours, 6 minutes
• Thor: Love and Thunder: 1 hour, 59 minutes
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: 2 hours, 41 minutes

Time Works Differently in the Quantum Realm

From what fans have seen from Ant-Man 3's marketing thus far, the threequel has quite a to-do list. 

In addition to Scott's newfound celebrity and his strained relationship with Cassie, the film is set to explore the Quantum Realm, which has newfound importance within the MCU.

And, while this is Ant-Man's third chapter, it's worth remembering that it's Kang's first within the MCU. No doubt that means the threequel will be setting the stage for future films and Disney+ series to come. 

Much of this is due to the efforts of Ant-Man director Peyton Reed who said he wanted Quantumania to be "the big Avengers movie" instead of another palate cleanser.

If that's truly what Quantumania has in store, it's no wonder it has a longer runtime than its previous films; and perhaps, fans should be questioning whether its 2 hours and 5 minutes runtime is long enough.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania arrives in theaters on February 17.

Led by Scott Lang, Ant-Man 3's Elton John-infused trailer helps to fulfill the multiverse promise by introducing a slew of new, crazy worlds. Viewers are given the impression that the main characters will journey through multiple realms. Initially, the first two Ant-Man movies only gave audiences a tease of what life inside the Quantum Realm was like, but this time, the microscopic world feels much bigger. The third film's "Quantumania" subtitle suggests that Ant-Man may further his learning with quantum physics and discover new, ridiculous capabilities of his iconic superhero suit. It also seems Scott and his family will visit new universes, large or small, which, in turn, helps to continue the expansion of the ever-growing multiverse.

How Many Worlds Are In Ant-Man 3's Trailer?

The teaser for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania introduced four or five different worlds as part of the larger exploration of the Quantum Realm. Upon their arrival, Ant-Man and his daughter, Cassie Lang, stand beside one another in a world consisting of a fragmented landscape littered with floating chunks of rock. Multiple beams of bright orange energy shoot down from dark, purplish clouds that surround them. Later in the trailer, Janet van Dyne and her husband Hank Pym stride through a realm that resembles a jungle made up of various fungi species and thick, colorful plants all around. On possible third world, a hooded figure is seen kneeling beside large spiral-like clouds, overlooking a light shooting through the sky, similar to fireworks.

As part of what looks like a fourth world, Kang the Conqueror appears in the trailer, powering up a strange machine within a massive city he built in the microverse, a city that is almost certainly his Chronopolis from the comics. Every building in the city is designed with a ring-like structure, which some have speculated might somehow tie back to the Mandarin's Ten Rings introduced in Shang-Chi. There will likely be even more to the Quantum Realm than what audiences saw in the teaser, as Marvel often holds things back from its trailers so as not to spoil.

Ant-Man 3 Sets A Challenge For Avengers 5 & 6

The third Ant-Man movie is set to explore more of the Quantum Realm and other worlds while Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars will expand upon what audiences saw in Doctor Strange 2. One challenge Ant-Man 3 creates for the upcoming movies is differentiating these worlds and ensuring that the stories within the MCU—those on Earth and in the multiverse—end up making sense. It will be interesting to see if Ant-Man's Quantum Realm and the multiverse will continue to be treated like two separate entities in the MCU or if they'll be framed as part of a whole. Hopefully, its story will be streamlined and Marvel's plan of expanding its stories to other universes won't become a convoluted mess. If Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania gets it right, it can fulfill the promise started by Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Marvel Studios is set to kick off Phase 5 of the MCU in early 2023 with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, under the direction of Peyton Reed as he completes the Ant-Man trilogy. This time, Reed will get to pull out all the stops by fully diving into the Quantum Realm, which will also bring along Jonathan Majors in his theatrical debut as Kang the Conqueror.

Taking over for Thanos as the mega big bad of the MCU in the Multiverse Saga, Kang is set to make his presence felt in a big way after one of his Variants, He Who Remains, stole the show in the final episode of 2021's Loki on Disney+. The first footage from San Diego Comic-Con 2022 already teased how many Avengers he's killed over the years, and he'll certainly be out to eliminate as many as possible as he runs into Marvel's tiniest heroes in Ant-Man 3.

Peyton Reed teased during Comic-Con that the events of Ant-Man 3 would "change the Marvel Cinematic Universe permanently," which seems all the more likely with a villain as big as Kang at the center of the action. Now, with the threequel only less than six months away, Reed looks deeper into Majors' performance and how it takes the story to another level.

Ant-Man Director on Kang Star's Performance

Speaking with The New York Times, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania director Peyton Reed discussed Jonathan Majors' performance in the film as Kang the Conqueror and how it makes the threequel better.

Although he admitted it to be a cliché, Reed compared Majors to "a young Marlon Brando," bringing an "energy and...presence" that raises the movie to new levels of excellence:

After getting her mother back from the alternate dimension, Evangeline Lilly says Wasp will struggle with the Quantum Realm in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Plot details for the Marvel Cinematic Universe threequel are currently unknown, though the film is said to follow the titular heroes as well as Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne on an adventure through the Quantum Realm. The group are also expected to face off against Kang the Conqueror in his proper MCU debut after Jonathan Majors appeared as a variant of the iconic villain in Loki season 1.

Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly are returning to lead the cast of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania as the eponymous MCU heroes alongside the returns of Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer and the MCU debuts of Kathryn Newton as Scott's daughter Cassie and Bill Murray as an undisclosed villain. Peyton Reed is also back in the director's chair for the film, with a script penned by Emmy-winning Rick and Morty alum Jeff Loveness. There's still just shy of a year remaining until Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania hits theaters, but one star is sharing some insight for the MCU threequel.

While speaking exclusively with Screen Rant at last week's San Diego Comic-Con, Evangeline Lilly teased what's to come from Wasp in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. In looking at the return of her mother from the alternate dimension, the star said that her character would struggle coming to terms with the Quantum Realm in the MCU threequel and it will serve as a major emotional arc for the Wasp. See what Lilly shared below:

The Marvel Studios panel at Hall H was full of new information at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con. Kevin Feige brought fans the foreseeable end of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Phase 4, and with it an entirely new slate of projects to look forward to. Between all of the feature film additions and original series that will be hitting Disney+, Collider is breaking it down for fans to easily absorb after all that mania. Speaking of, during the panel Feige revealed that Phase 5 will kick off in 2023 with Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, and Collider was there to get an exclusive look at the official trailer.

The Ant-Man threequel was declared the first of the MCU's Phase 5, which now falls under the title The Multiverse Saga along with Phases 4 and 6, at SDCC. Last year director Peyton Reed announced on Twitter that filming wrapped on Ant-Man's (Paul Rudd) third installment, and on July 23 the first trailer was released to attendees of Hall H. In the trailer, Quantumania picks up in the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame with a book tour for Scott Lang's autobiography "Look Out for The Little Guy." While his crowds of fans are enthralled by the superhero's heroic accounts, back at home Lang's life isn't quite as glamorous as he'd like the public eye to think. In her MCU debut, Kathryn Newton's Cassie Lang seems to be having trouble at school and with the law - like father, like daughter. Likewise, Lang's relationship with Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) is looking a little rocky, and the pressure is compounded by her parents Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer).

Quantumania will give fans a glimpse into the time Lang spent stuck in the Quantum Realm following the Snap, as well as how he coped with his return to a changed world. Having missed five formative years of his daughter's life took a toll on both of them, on everyone, and Quantumania will see Lang grappling with his Ant-Man responsibilities, as well as his responsibilities to Cassie, Hope and his family. Unfortunately, the trailer takes a turn when Scott hears the voice of Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) saying, "You're an interesting man, Scott Lang. You've lost a lot of time, but time, it isn't what you think. It's not a straight line."

Back in Pym's lab an experiment sends the group hurtling back into the Quantum Realm, though Scott tries his best to keep Cassie from being pulled in. The bulk of the film will take place within the dimension and will see them battling Quantum creatures, a run-in with Bill Murray and addressing some of the tension that has been lingering between them all. In the trailer, it's at this point that Kang's voice returns saying, "When you can see time the way I do, you can see everything. Everything you're holding onto, everything you call life — I know how it ends." Kang's first MCU feature film appearance sees him standing before Scott Lang, who declares himself an Avenger in the face of this unknown enemy. Coolly, Kang replies, "You're an Avenger? Have I killed you before?"

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania will premiere in theaters on February 17, 2023, ahead of the third and final Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3 on May 5 and Captain Marvel's sequel The Marvels on July 28, 2023. Check out the official synopsis for Quantumania below, as well as the trailer for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, the next and final series in the MCU Phase 4 hitting Disney+ on August 17: