When “Ant-Man” was released in 2015, it introduced the world to the MIT-educated electrical engineer turned criminal Scott Lang, who adopted the name of Ant-Man. Fast-forward to 2023, with the release of “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” in theaters this past weekend, here are 10 great moments from Ant-Man thus far in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
10. Ant-Man falls into bathtub
(31:00) “Ant-Man”
Our introduction to Scott as Ant-Man comes just 30 minutes into his eponymous debut in the MCU, “Ant-Man,” where he dons the suit for the first time. Similar to how other superhero origin stories treat the protagonist on their first encounter with their newfound power, Scott is unsuspecting when it comes to the limits of the Ant-Man suit that he has been entrusted with. While his reactions are the same to an unfamiliar situation, his circumstances are drastically different, because he is faced with anxiety over the theft of this super suit, and is coming to grips with his morality over his actions.
9. Ant-Man gets a “Get out of Jail Free” suit
(36:00) “Ant-Man”
The unique imagery that the ants are able to demonstrate by slowly counting down, as Scott contemplates taking the suit, allows the character to abide by one of the most important film rules — show, don’t tell. The subsequent aerial-ant scene following Scott through San Francisco’s sky is just the payoff the audience deserved.
8. Yellow Jacket vs. the Ant in a briefcase
(1:33:00) “Ant-Man”
The juxtaposition of personalities between the villain Yellow Jacket and Ant-Man through this fight is immense. Scott is a petty criminal to make ends meet, requiring precision and detail-oriented theft, while the Yellow Jacket — a suit worn by Darren Cross — the executive of Pym Technologies, is not worried about the details. He is only fixated on one thing alone — completing his goals regardless of the cost.
7. Ant-Man goes subatomic
(1:40:35) “Ant-Man”
The emotional climax of Ant-Man, where he decides to sacrifice himself for the benefit of his daughter, is where we see the action that was foreshadowed throughout the entire film — Ant-Man goes subatomic to take down the Yellow Jacket. This represented a change in his character, where he goes from a loving dad with a checkered past to a hero worthy of the suit that he wears.
6. Ant-Man fights the Avengers
(1:36:00) “Captain America: Civil War”
Ant-Man fighting relevant opponents is introduced in the form of Ant-Man shrinking down and infiltrating Iron Man’s armor, and then growing in size and attacking the rest of the Avengers. This was an excellent demonstration of Ant-Man’s powers in a combat setting, establishing Ant-Man as a force to be reckoned with.
5. Ant-Man sneaks into elementary school
(37:30) “Ant-Man and the Wasp”
Returning to Ant-Man’s relatively lower-stakes adventures, this scene explores a broken super suit, which forces Scott to drastically shrink in size to that of a kindergartener. While an innocuous situation rendered more wholesome by a child-sized Ant-Man recovering a trophy titled ‘World’s Greatest Grandma,’ this situation explores the comedic side of Ant-Man.
4. Ant-Man skateboards using a truck
(1:23:00) “Ant-Man and the Wasp”
This scene explores Ant-Man at his most human and at his most whimsical. During a chase scene, his regulator malfunctions — causing him to dramatically grow in size — leading him to use a truck to skateboard down to the waterfront of San Francisco. This scene plays with Ant-Man’s advantages and the constraints that he is not limited by in movement.
3. Ant-Man harassing criminals on the ferry
(1:29:00) “Ant-Man and the Wasp”
Ant-Man reclaiming Hank Pym’s Laboratory on the ferry by growing in size is the kind of low-stakes adventure that has become synonymous with the character of Ant-Man, this far in the MCU at least. The question was never about whether or not Ant-Man could reclaim the laboratory, but it was a matter of how he would approach this problem. Growing in size to a giant was just the satisfying conclusion to the puzzle.
2. Ant-Man getting lost in the Quantum World
(1:50:40) “Ant-Man and the Wasp”
Scott, on his mission to harvest quantum energy, is suddenly trapped in this subatomic region when Hank and Hope get turned into dust from Thanos’ snap. This scene connects the continuity of Ant-Man back to the rest of the MCU, and reinforces the stakes heading into “Avengers: Endgame.”
1. Ant-Man time traveling
(58:00) “Avengers: Endgame”
The first real team-up between Ant-Man and the Avengers started off a little rocky, with Scott wearing the time travel suit and having time travel through him, instead of in the opposite direction. This technological challenge was aided by Ant-Man’s unique charm and his perseverance to save the lost half of humanity at any cost necessary.