The second trailer follows in the footsteps of the first, revisiting some of the key scenes. Although Michelle Pfeiffer’s Wasp makes a brief appearance, it’s in a flashback, so Marvel clearly still have some major surprises in store. But there’s a lot still revealed.
22. Cassie Lang Teases Avengers 4
Scott Lang may consider himself to be something of a screw-up when it comes to superheroics, but his daughter has a different opinion. “I wish I could fight bad guys, like you,” Cassie declares. In the comics, Cassie grew up in the shadow of superheroes - she was close enough to the Avengers to call Iron Man “Uncle Tony.” After her father’s tragic death, she actually became a superhero in her own right; Cassie has operated under a wide range of different aliases, from Stature to Ant-Girl, and has been a mainstay in Marvel’s popular Young Avengers team.
It’s possible that Cassie will ultimately achieve her dream in the MCU. Avengers 4 has cast Emma Fuhrmann as the teenage Cassie Lang, suggesting both a time jump and an increased role for Scott’s daughter. We already know Ant-Man and Wasp will join Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, but could another shrinking hero take on Thanos too?
Read More: Ant-Man & the Wasp Trailer Sets Up New Avengers 4 Hero
21. Ant-Man Again
In the aftermath of Captain America: Civil War, many of the heroes decided to stick with Cap. Scott Lang and Clint Barton, however, headed back to their families. According to Avengers: Infinity War, they signed plea bargains and wound up under a form of house arrest. It seems that, under the terms of these agreements, both heroes have been forced to abandon their superhero identities; per the trailer, Scott Lang hasn’t been Ant-Man for quite some time.
But, of course, Scott has always been more than a little reckless, so it was always going to be a matter of time before he suited up again. And despite that plea bargain, the trailer doesn’t exactly make it look as though Scott and his friends will be flying under the radar.
So far, there’s been no real indication of just when Ant-Man & the Wasp is set. It’s clearly after Civil War, but the movie could be any time up to Avengers: Infinity War. In fact, Marvel teased this new trailer with a simple question: Where were Ant-Man and Wasp? That means it’s actually possible that this is happening at the very same time as Infinity War.
20. A Massive Car Chase To Catch Sonny Burch
The trailer opens with Ant-Man riding a truck in pursuit of some thugs. Scott has used his size-changing powers to grow to a larger-than-life size, and climbs on the back of a truck, using his feet to pursue the hoodlums. The contemptuous ease with which (Gi)Ant-Man deals with a guy with a gun - flicking it away with a finger - is perfectly in-character. Unfortunately, Ant-Man’s heroism goes wrong. He winds up struggling to bring the truck to a stop, with his feet tearing apart the road. “I seem to mess it up almost every time,” Lang admits to his daughter.
But who is Ant-Man pursuing? Look closely and you’ll see Walton Goggins’s Sonny Burch inside the car, with Hank Pym’s building on his lap. This we’ve seen a lot of this extended chase scene in the marketing for Ant-Man & the Wasp, and it appears that the building and Burch are the focus of it.
19. Wasp In Action
Part of that car chase involves an absolutely stunning action bear involving the Wasp, giving a sense of just good a fighter Janet must be. In-universe, it’s clear Wasp has been honing her skills for quite some time, and has essentially developed her own unique fighting style; a combination of agile martial arts with size-changing stunts.
One particularly cool move is the ease with which Wasp moves from the back of the car to the front, building up momentum to spin through the windows and smash into the car’s driver. This is definitely no damsel in distress.
18. Luis Is Going Up In The World
Michael Pena’s Luis was one of the most popular characters in the first Ant-Man, and it seems he plays a major role in the sequel. Luis is shown as CEO of a company, one the Pyms go to for help in their battle against the Ghost. It looks as though Scott is working for Luis, meaning the company he runs is presumably the “X-Con” security firm teased in recent set photos. That idea is lifted from a recent comic book run, where Scott started a business called Ant-Man Security Solutions.
17. Pym Travels to the Quantum Realm
Ant-Man introduced the concept of the Quantum Realm, a dimension that could only be entered by shrinking to a subatomic size. This was described as “a reality where all concepts of time and space are irrelevant.” Decades ago, Hank Pym’s wife, Janet Van Dyne, was lost to the Quantum Realm; Pym had believed this meant she was dead, until Scott Lang proved it was possible to return from this mysterious dimension.
Reinvigorated by this, Pym has clearly devoted all his wealth and technology to exploring the Quantum Realm. He’s created a Jack-Kirby-esque vehicle that he uses to safely enter the dimension, vaguely reminiscent of designs used by the Fantastic Four to explore the Negative Zone in the comics. We know Pym’s quest will ultimately be successful, and that Janet Van Dyne will somehow return to Earth. But that particular part of the plot remains shrouded in mystery.
16. The Quantum Realm has Changed
Notice that the Quantum Realm looks very different here. It’s possible that the effects we saw in the first film were tied to the fact Ant-Man was still shrinking - essentially, he was passing through this dimension, perhaps even on the way to another layer beneath it. In Ant-Man & the Wasp, however, the team are actually exploring the Quantum Realm, so they’ve presumably learned how to stabilize their shrinking.
Or it might just mean that Marvel fancied switching up the effects a little.
15. Ghost’s Origins
The main villain of Ant-Man & the Wasp is a character known as the Ghost. Luis gives the first hint as to the Ghost’s MCU origins in the new trailer; she stole Hank Pym’s technology, and used it to tap into the power of the Quantum Realm. Somehow, doing so granted her the ability to move out of phase with reality; Ghost can “walk through walls and stuff.” The idea is certainly consistent with Doctor Strange, where sorcerers could draw power from other planes of existence, and use it to reshape reality.
As for Ghost’s motives? Luis - and the trailer - isn’t really interested. “Now she wants to take over the world,” he remarks, “or whatever.”
14. Ghost Owns Ant-Man
Just how powerful is the Ghost? The trailer indicates she’s something of a powerhouse; in one action sequence, Ghost absolutely owns Ant-Man with apparent ease. It looks as though the MCU’s version of the Ghost possesses similar powers to Vision. She can turn intangible, but she can also become ultra-dense, and thus gain superhuman strength. That would certainly explain why she can send Scott crashing through a wall.
These skills are the most we really get of Ghost’s part in the story, although given she’s glimpsed in a couple of beats in Hank Pym’s lab, she likely intends to exploit the power of the Quantum Realm in some way.
13. The FBI Surround the Pyms
Given Scott Lang signed a plea bargain, he was presumably forced to tell the US Government just who provided him with advanced tech. That may be why we see Pyms on the run, hunted by the FBI. That would no doubt explain the hints of antagonism between the Pyms and Lang, with both Hank and Hope blaming Scott a little for their time as fugitives.
This scene has been teased quite a lot in marketing and trailers, with the FBI finally catching up with the Pyms. But finding the pair is one thing; actually catching them is another. Ant-Man & the Wasp clearly takes the size-changing stunts to the next level, and Hank Pym is always prepared. This is the guy who carried a tank on his keychain, after all.
12. Ant-Man and the Wasp Team-Up (At Last)
The trailers are hammering one point home: Wasp is no sidekick. The partnership between Ant-Man and the Wasp is one of equals, with each contributing their own skills and abilities. That’s one key reason why the two characters’ powersets are subtly different. They may both size-change, but Wasp is the one with wings and blasters, while Ant-Man can control ants. In truth, Cassie is probably right; her father does need a “partner,” someone to help keep him from making rash decisions, someone to center him. There’s clear, unbridled joy in Scott’s voice when he declares; “Ant-Man and the Wasp, teamin’ up!”
11. Wasp’s Kitchen Fight (And Salt Shaker Trick)
Where Ant-Man introduced the size-changing tech, the sequel looks set to use it in unique and creative ways. Take this hilarious scene, which shows just how deadly a salt shaker and a Pym particle can become. This is the second time we’ve seen Hope use a trick like this; the first trailer showed her toss a Pez dispenser. Hopefully, she’s a little smarter than Scott was in Captain America: Civil War, where he used a truck as an accidentally-explosive weapon.
This forms part of a bigger kitchen fight sequence involving Hope. It’s not clear how important this is in the plot, but looks set to be a big introduction to the character, with Scott and Hank looking on over monitors.
10. A Wasp’s Tears
This is perhaps the most fascinating scene in the trailer, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment that shows Hope Van Dyne in tears. The challenges faced by the heroes are clearly deeply personal, and they’ll test Hope in ways she never imagined.
It’s entirely speculation, but it’s possible these scenes are connected to Janet Van Dyne, Hope’s mother. The location appears to be Hank Pym’s lab, where were likely to see the mission into the Quantum Realm take place.
9. The Drumming Ant
This wouldn’t be an Ant-Man film without some ant-related humor. It seems Cassie’s pet giant ant is more intelligent than we’d have expected; it’s learning the drums. Look closely, and you’ll see just how Scott escapes his house arrest - the ant is wearing his police ankle tracker.
8. Seagull Attack
The world is a dangerous place when you’re riding the back of an ant. This particular scene is reminiscent of classic size-changing films such as Honey, I Shrunk The Kids, which typically saw pint-sized heroes desperately attempt to survive a natural world that thought they were prey. In Scott’s case, riding on the back of an ant makes him an attractive snack for a seagull. He looks to be jumping into a body of water, which will become important later.
7. Scott in the Quantum Realm (With Wasp?)
The Quantum Realm is a very dangerous place, but it seems Scott Lang chooses to return there of his own volition using hissuit. It’s not clear why he’d do so without Hank Pym’s protective vessel, or how easy he’ll find it to get out again. Equally concerning, though, is the fact that he isn’t alone. There’s something else in the Quantum Realm with him, something that rushes past him at speed. It’s only a blur on the trailer, but it’s sure to be an important part of the plot.
Is this actually Janet Van Dyne? If so, Ant-Man has just spotted the original Wasp. Alternatively, it could be that the Quantum Realm is actually inhabited by some sort of creatures, and that Scott is about to meet them. Perhaps that’s how Janet has survived for so long in the Quantum Realm; she’s literally gone native.
6. Teamwork Against Ghost
Any team-up ultimately raises one question: who takes charge? In the case of Ant-Man & the Wasp, the answer is clearly Hope. To be fair, Scott’s probably not the best leader, with some bizarre leadership advice: why would the woman with wings go low? Where the earlier scene showed Ghost own Ant-Man, it’s clear the heroes can be an effective team against her. Wasp uses a similar maneuver to the one in the car, using size-changing to build up momentum so she can deliver a powerful kick.
Given the lab setting, this presumably comes later in the film as Ghost goes straight for the Pyms. Good thing the titular heroes are finally working together.
5. The Building MacGuffin
Hank Pym’s building appears to be the film’s MacGuffin. It’s clearly his mobile base of operations, containing all his technology. The first trailer revealed that Walton Goggins’s Sonny Burch will steal it, leading to the much-teased car-chase across the streets of San Francisco. Now, this second trailer appears to have revealed the end of that particular sequence. The building is successfully restored to its normal size. Hilariously, it appears to happen in the middle of a car-park, causing scenes of panic as cars as tossed aside by the suddenly-growing building.
4. A Brief Flashback Scene
Blink and you’ll miss it, but there’s actually a brief flashback scene that shows the original Wasp and Ant-Man in action. If you look carefully, you’ll see that both costumes are the old designs. Presumably, this scene pertains to one of Ant-Man’s missions for S.H.I.E.L.D. back in the day, although it’s unclear how the flashback is relevant to the movie’s plot.
Whatever, the case, this is officially the first glimpse we’ve had of Michelle Pfeiffer’s Wasp in action!
3. Poor Luis
A key part of the previously-discussed car chase sequence involves a shrinking truck, used to evade danger and as a battering ram. Hope’s the driver - obviously - but we’re more interested in the passenger.
Luis gets his first taste of size-changing in this beat; he’s terrified, as the shrunken truck drives along, rubble crashing around it. All it would take is a single impact to kill them all, as Luis is painfully aware (depending on how physics are being applied here). Pena clearly has more to do this time around. In fact, as he’s carrying the building, he’s going to be at the center of the story.
2. Goliath
The trailer closes with Scott and Hank chatting with Laurence Fishburne’s Dr. Bill Foster, better known to comic book fans as Goliath. We already knew that Foster was reimagined as an old partner of Hank Pym’s, but this scene reveals just how closely the two collaborated. Pym actually trusted Bill Foster with the secrets of the Pym Particles, running the “Goliath” experiments with him. Foster’s size-changing record was 21 feet, much to Scott’s pride; he’s managed to reach 65 feet. Naturally, that sets up a hilarious joke about boys comparing sizes.
But why did these experiments cease? There have been ominous hints that exposure to Pym Particles can actually have negative health effects. That’s why Hank can’t become Ant-Man himself any longer. In Captain America: Civil War, Scott admitted that the first time he’d tried to go Giant-Man he’d passed out. The experience appears to place a human body under immense strain, perhaps explaining why Foster had to stop at 21 feet, and even why the experiments ceased. If that’s the case, Scott should really be more carefully playing with the size-changing technology.
1. Scott in the River
This seems to be one of Marvel’s favorite scenes in the film, with (Gi)Ant-Man looming over the ferry. Understandably so; it’s a brilliant moment, and the echoing laughter - similar to Scott when grabbing War Machine in Captain America: Civil War - imbues the scene with real power. At the same time, this scene “grounds” the superheroics in San Francisco, with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.
Marvel Comics have always prided themselves on setting their stories in “the world outside your window,” and Ant-Man & the Wasp is honoring that.
MORE: Ant-Man and the Wasp is The Most Connected to Avengers: Infinity War
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