Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania - new trailer drops worrying fans of Paul Rudd’s fate

We are a little over a month away from the start of a brand new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and already fans of Paul Rudd’s character from the Ant-Man series are worried about his fate. A new trailer for the third Ant-Man movie, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has dropped, signaling the start of Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it doesn’t look good for the beloved Scott Lang (played by Paul Rudd.)

The trailer shows the “big bad” of the film, Kang the Conqueror (played by Jonathan Majors) grabbing our hero Scott Lang by the throat in what can only be described as a possible final battle between the two. Kang was originally introduced in the Disney television series Loki, starring Tom Hiddlestone and Owen Wilson as a “time-traveling, multiversal adversary” as He Who Remains - though Kang happens to be his alternate-timeline variant.

He also looks to be Phase Five’s overarching villain, similar to how Thanos was during Phase Three of the MCU and the “Avengers level threat” he posed during both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: End Game, leading fans of Ant-Man worried some seismic event may occur to Scott Lang that will eventually lead to the next big MCU crossover, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty in 2025 and Avengers: Secret War in 2026.

Shock deaths in Marvel movies are nothing new - tears were shed when we saw Tony Stark/Iron Man sacrifice himself in a perfect send-off for Robert Downey Jr’s now iconic character, perhaps even more when Aunt May died in Spider-Man: No Way Home. So should Paul Rudd fans be concerned a similar fate will fall upon the quick-witted, at times reluctant hero?

“There is NO WAY he's surviving Kang”

Social Media have already weighed in on the date of Scott Lang, even when the teaser trailer was dropped for the movie months earlier. One Twitter user announced “I love Ant-Man. I really do. But there is NO WAY he's surviving Kang,” while another simply wrote, “Ant-Man is F****D.” Among the many “RIP Ant-Man” posts, there has been some hope Rudd survives. “I'm still wondering who shows up with a red portal to save Ant-Man after Kang The Conqueror is clearly beating him. For this reason, I believe Scott Lang will survive” a confident Twitter user wrote, while one simply spoke of the trailer that “my favorite part of the Ant-Man trailer was how they showed the entire movie.”

Rudd signed a three-year contract with Marvel Studios, which included all three Ant-Man movies alongside other appearances throughout the forever intertwining Marvel Cinematic Universe. As of writing, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is scheduled to contractually be his last, though perhaps someone else might pick up the Ant-Man mantle.

MODOK appearance and Scarlet Witch theories

Other talking points from the trailer include the first sighting of MODOK (Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing), one of the more unique characters in the Marvel universe. In Marvel’s printed form, MODOK was a product of experiments that resulted in him developing a freakishly overdeveloped head and a stunted body, causing the character's signature look and use of a hoverchair for mobility.

He will be played by Cory Stoll, who played the main antagonist in the first Ant-Man movie, Darren Cross/Yellowjacket. With director Payton Reed admitting the film plays with the ideas of the past always find a way to come back to a person, has the casting of Stoll in the Ant-Man franchise once more alluded to perhaps someone from Hank Pym’s (Michael Douglas) past coming back to cause problems?

There has also been talk of whether Wanda Maximoff, now the full-blown Scarlet Witch (played by Elizabeth Olson), may also make an appearance in the film. Scott Lang introduced the Avengers to the Quantum Verse, and the last Doctor Strange movie also brought more attention to the concept of multi-verses merging with one another or allowing our heroes or villains to traverse across them.

Scarlet Witch has already demonstrated in the movies she is capable of hopping universes, having harnessed some of the darker powers from the same books Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) has studied from.

The trailer shows a similar colour scheme to that of Scarlet Witch, leading some to believe she also may have an involvement in the new movie. Has she rediscovered her humanity, or will she team up with Kang The Conqueror to form a super-villain team to oppose whomever the new Avengers team comprises of (and rumoured Fantastic Four involvement also)?

All will be revealed as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is released in cinemas on February 23 2023, drawing the curtain up for the brand new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.