In just a few short days, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will release in cinemas across the globe, making it the first major superhero film of 2023.
Ant Man 3 kicks off the next phase of entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, dubbed Phase Five.
Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly reprise their roles as superheroes in what has been described as the most ambitious Ant-Man entry to date.
Joining Rudd and Lilly on the cast is Kathryn Newton, Jonathan Majors, Michelle Pfeiffer, Bill Murray, Michael Douglas and Samuel L. Jackson.
Peyton Reed is in the director’s chair, with Kevin Feige and Stephen Broussard as producers, plus Jeff Loveness as the main writer.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Reed said that he was hoping to turn Ant-Man into a ‘big Avengers movie’ with Quantumania.
He said: “People felt like, Oh, these are fun little palate cleansers after a gigantic Avengers movie.
“For this third one, I said, ‘I don’t want to be the palate cleanser anymore. I want to be the big Avengers movie.'”
While many of us still have to wait over a week to watch the newest Marvel movie in cinema, some lucky people have had the chance to watch it early.
On Monday (6 February), the curtains for the film opened as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania was premiered in Los Angeles for a select number of people. These included industry critics, who will likely be publishing their reviews on 14 February.
Some of those critics have already taken to social media to discuss their initial views on Quantumania, with many praising Jonathan Majors’ performance as Kang the Conqueror.
On Twitter, Variety’s Jazz Tangcay said: “Had an absolute blast watching #AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania.
“Creative, irresistibly energetic and filled with some great action sequences. Welcome Jonathan Majors – such a bad a**. The effects are superb.”
Collider’s Steven Weintraub added: “Marvel’s #AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania is a strong start to Phase 5.
“I now understand why it’s called #Quantumania. Jonathan Majors is excellent as Kang and cannot wait to see where this all goes. 2 after the credits scenes and both are very good.”
Meanwhile, critic Jamie Broadnaux said that she got ‘heavy Star Wars vibes’ from the film.
She remarked: “#AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania gives some heavy Star Wars vibes! Fantastic performance from Jonathan Majors who is incredible as the big bad villain. Make sure to stay for 2 post credit scenes!”
On the other hand, CNET’s Sean Keane was less impressed, he said: “#AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania has way too much going on — it’s tough to connect emotionally to any of it.
“Jonathan Majors’ Kang is a charismatic, intense baddy and visually awesome, but the threat he represents is too abstract.”
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will be released in cinemas on 17 February.
