Ant-Man-Ultron-Marvel-Comics

Since Adam McKay turned down the Ant-Man gig, I’ve been hearing a lot of the following:

“After all that’s happened, why don’t they just cancel/postpone Ant-Man?”

I’ve also heard this a few times:

“Who cares about this character anyway? Does anyone actually want this movie?”

Here’s the truth, folks: come hell or high water, Marvel is intent on making Ant-Man happen. Despite the character’s lesser-known status, they believe in the project and they predict it will be a success, regardless of who might be directing it. Why? Like Apple, Marvel is a tastemaker. They don’t care what you think you want. Their job is to make you want it anyway. Want a new iPhone model this year? Fuck you. You’re getting TWO iPhones, and you’re gonna like it. After you’ve consumed whatever thing you never knew you wanted, their job is to make sure you’ll crave more of it, on a regular basis.

I don’t mean to make Marvel or Apple sound so insidious, but Guardians of the Galaxy is a perfect example of this. If you’re like me (not a faithful Marvel comics reader), you probably had no clue who the Guardians of the Galaxy were until the film was announced. I didn’t want a Guardians of the Galaxy movie because I had no attachment to the property. But now… I fucking WANT that goddamn movie.

So here’s the deal with Ant-Man: Adam McKay backed out, and Ruben Fleischer is reportedly in talks to direct Ghostbusters 3. The last man standing is We’re the Millers director Rawson Marshall Thurber, but I’m hearing now from This Is Infamous that Thurber has also washed his hands of Ant-Man. I’d consider this pure speculation at the moment, but I’ll keep you posted. If it’s true: ouch.

Unlike Ant-Man, the upcoming Dr. Strange has a director: Scott Derrickson. I like most of what Derrickson has done (especially The Exorcism of Emily Rose), so I’m eager to see what his approach to the film might be. With San Diego Comic-Con right around the corner, I’m sure we’ll hear more soon.