Cast of Ant Man and the Wasp Provide a Giggly Good Time

 

Ant-Man and The Wasp was the most fun I’d enjoyed at a movie in a while!  I laughed my buns off, so much that I felt inclined to watch the film more than once.  Paul Rudd contributing to the script and starring in the film is a daunting task, but he pulls it off flawlessly.  Having the opportunity for many a photo opp and Q&A with the cast was definitely a highlight.  Here are some excerpts from that press conference…

 

Q:  What was the most daunting sequence you were elated to complete filming?

PEYTON REED:   There were a lot of daunting sequences, because we really wanted to set out and go nuts with the technology in this movie.  It occurred to us at some point, well, maybe it’s not just Ant-man and The Wasp who can shrink maybe grow.  What if we really went nuts with vehicles, buildings and other things. But what that did was create some real technical challenges.   So I think maybe the biggest is a whole car chase that took us through the city of San Francisco.   We wanted to do a chase that you just simply wouldn’t see in any other movie because of all the size changes.   Well, something we thought about a lot, when we decided to spend more time in the streets of San Francisco, sorry, Michael. [LAUGHTER]…  We wanted to do all these very specific things and make San Francisco a character in the movie, but utilize the city and make this chase specific to that city.  So it occurred to use to use the landmarks, things like Lombard Street, might not be allowed.  But thankfully the city of San Francisco was so cooperative and gave us free range to do some of the craziest things imaginable in that city.

 

Q:  We’ve been introduced to the Quantum Realm in two films, three with Doctor Strange — where… what is the future of the Quantum Realm?

 

KEVIN FEIGE:   In the first film, we got a glimpse.  There was a little silhouette of Janet as the Wasp, which is a big story element in this movie.  There are things that you see back there… that Peyton has put in there — where and how they pay off in the near term, in the long-term… remains to be seen.

 

Q:  Miss Lilly…I’m just wondering what you loved doing with Hope and the Wasp in this film?

EVANGELINE LILLY:  Well, I loved getting to be a Bladerunner.  The knife gag in the restaurant scene is very, very cool.  I love the kind of element of having somebody who’s completely in jeopardy, but also completely in control.  It was just fun to finally get to see her take on the mantle, because this is something that she’s been ready and willing to do basically her whole life.  Her parents are both superheroes.  She was rearing to get in that suit for an entire film and we never got there. So to actually see her fighting in that moment was wonderful.

 

Q:  So, Hannah..I always ask the villain what’s their purpose and do they see themselves as the villain?

HANNAH JOHN-KAMEN: Absolutely not.   I definitely approach the character… not as a villain, at all.  Definitely a threat to the characters and the heroes of the movie, but when you play a villain, you have to play it like you’re the good guy and everyone else is bad.  So, the stakes are so high and she has such a clear objective in the movie…every man for himself.  Every woman for herself.

EVANGELINE LILLY: I have a seven-year-old son and he loves violent movies. And he always talks about good guys and bad guys in movies, I always feel a responsibility to clarify for him — honey you know that there really is no such thing as a bad guy.  Right?  They’re only just good guys, who have made so many bad choices, they’ve forgotten how to make good choices.  And a true hero’s job is to remind them of their goodness.  Not to annihilate them, to kill them.  You know, it’s to help them redeem themselves.  Superhero stories are fun and they’re a totally different world, but what I think is cool and is that you’re teaching children if you encounter somebody that might have a different opinion than you, that doesn’t mean they’re a villain.  If they have a different objective than you, it doesn’t mean you should attack them.  Maybe you want to try to understand them first.

On the subject how there is an obvious parent/child theme running throughout the film, Paul Rudd explained…

PAUL RUDD:  Well, it’s true, this theme of parents and children run throughout the film.  Fathers and daughters. It’s something that’s relatable because whether or not we have children of our own…we all have parents.  I’m playing somebody that doesn’t have innate super abilities.   I have a daughter roughly the age of Cassie in the film and while I know for a fact she’s going to want me to build a slide after she sees the film; which is really hard to do in a New York apartment — I know what it’s like to spend the evening playing with Barbie dolls. That’s the glue.  That’s the soul of it, the love that a family shares and how we need each other.  You know, parents need their kids; kids need their parents.  If we could somehow build a very funny movie, one that appeals to all ages that, you’re right, that families and kids could see but that actually still has all of the elements that it fits in the Marvel Universe…all ages are going to be wowed by certain aspects of it.

Trust me when I tell you that this film is for people of ages who love superheroes, love Marvel and love to laugh — as there will be plenty of moments where you will chuckle out loud.  Ant-Man and The Wasp hit theaters tomorrow!!!  Take the family and get your giggle on.