It’s official! Two weeks after Edgar Wright’s surprise and abrupt departure from Marvel’s ‘Ant-Man’, the House of Ideas has finally found someone to direct the film. According to the Marvel official website, Peyton Reed will be directing the movie with Adam McKay reworking the script.
The news was announced early Saturday morning, and like the announcement of Wright’s withdrawal, it was short and sweet:
When Marvel’s “Ant-Man” hits theaters July 17, 2015, director Peyton Reed will help shepherd the hero into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a cast led by Paul Rudd and Michael Douglas, with writer Adam McKay contributing to the film’s script.
While not having directed much in the sci-fi genre, Peyton Reed has directed a few well-known comedies such as the cheertastic film ‘Bring It On’ starring Kirsten Dunst (‘Spider-Man’ trilogy) and Eliza Dushku (‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’, ‘Tru Calling’, ‘Dollhouse’), ‘The Break-Up’ with Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Anderson, as well as Jim Carrey’s ‘Yes Man’.
Helping with the script duties will be Adam McKay (‘Anchorman’, ‘Anchorman 2’, ‘The Other Guys’) who was also, at one point, being considered for the helmer’s chair but walked away stating he was committed to other projects and “not sure it can work.”
While both men seem to have the comedic chops to handle the project, what does that mean about Wright’s vision for ‘Ant-Man’? He has been with the project since its inception, and with the cause of his walk-out being attributed to the rewrites to his script and the recent statement that McKay will also be contributing to the screenplay, it sounds that fans may not get the ‘Ant-Man’ film that was originally pitched at last year’s Comic-Con.
A sense of this is also given with the new synopsis released by Marvel:
Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, con-man Scott Lang (Rudd) must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym (Douglas), protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.
With Marvel’s current record of highly successful big budget superhero movies, will ‘Ant-Man’ be the studios’ Kryptonite?
Reed has a large mountain to overcome with this project, but fans of Marvel will be watching and hoping that it all comes together.
‘Ant-Man’ is slated to hit theaters on July 17, 2015.
