Marvel’s Ant-Man director Peyton Reed, who famously replaced Edgar Wright in the 11th hour of pre-production, is in negotiations to return for Ant-Man and the Wasp.
This summer’s Ant-Man was a solid hit for Marvel, a quirky heist movie starring Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly and Michael Douglas.
It was a relief to see how well the movie turned out, considering the backstage kerfuffle surrounding Edgar Wright, the original director of Ant-Man who had been working on the movie for more than 10 years before ultimately leaving Marvel behind, allegedly because Kevin Feige began ordering script changes without Wright’s consent.
Marvel then brought in Peyton Reed as a last-minute replacement, and evidently, they were happy with his take on the franchise — and his box office returns!
The Hollywood Reporter wrote Wednesday that Peyton Reed is in negotiations with Marvel for the recently announced Ant-Man sequel, Ant-Man and the Wasp, which is set for July 2018.
Marvel has a habit of bringing directors back for its sequels: Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy and Iron Man all saw their original directors (Joss Whedon, James Gunn and Jon Favreau, respectively) return for the second installments, while the Thor and Captain America franchises changed hands. The Russo Brothers, who helmed Captain America: The Winter Soldier, are returning not only for Civil War, but for the final two Avengers movies.
Related: 8 Ant-Man easter eggs you may have missed
The Ant-Man sequel has added female lead Hope Van Dyne/the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly) to the title, but unfortunately the decision to expand this franchise has pushed back the studio’s first female-led movie, Captain Marvel, which was originally slated for November 2018. The movie will now premiere in March of 2019.
Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly and Michael Douglas are all expected back for Ant-Man and the Wasp, which chronologically will follow Black Panther (starring Chadwick Boseman), which has been pushed up to February 8, 2018.
Paul Rudd will reprise the role of Ant-Man in next summer’s Captain America: Civil War. The sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp is set to hit cinemas on July 6, 2018.
Previous to Ant-Man, Peyton Reed was best known for directing comedies, including Bring it On, Yes Man and Down With Love. He has also directed several episodes of New Girl and The Goodwin Games.