‘Ant-Man And The Wasp’ Could Be Marvel Studios' First Romantic Comedy
“Superhero fatigue” is a term that’s been on the tip of everyone’s tongues for the past decade, but for the most part, Marvel has managed to avoid that condemnation. Why? Because the comic book studio has put a genre twist on their standard formula for nearly every film:Captain America: The Winter Soldierwas a political thriller,Guardians of the Galaxyflaunted its trippy space opera inspirations,Spider-Man: Homecomingrecalled John Hughes teen comedies.
The firstAnt-Manreceived the genre film treatment with a superhero twist on the heist movie, and its sequelAnt-Man and the Wasppromises to dip into a genre that Marvel has never touched before: the romantic-comedy. I mean, when you castPaul Rudd, how could you not make a rom-com?
According toKinometro(viaFlickering Myth), a Russian website attending a Kinorynok film presentation by Marvel, a promo video forAnt-Man and the Waspwas introduced with the statement that it was “the first rom-com from Marvel.”
IfAnt-Man and the Waspdoes indeed offer a rom-com twist to its superhero story, then it would indeed be the first romantic-comedy from Marvel. The previous films have skirted the genre with meet-cutes between its heroes and love interest like Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter inCaptain America: The First Avengeror the cracklingHis Girl Friday-lite chemistry between Tony Stark and Pepper Potts inIron Man, but never has a Marvel film dived fully into the genre. And like Evangeline Lilly’s Hope van Dyne declares in the end credits ofAnt-Man,it’s about damn time.
Like I said before, Paul Rudd is a renowned comedy star, but he’s first and foremost Josh fromClueless. Try as he might to subvert his dimple-faced teen heartthrob image with roles in satirical comedies, Rudd was made to be a rom-com star, and it’s only fitting that he’ll take on that role again as a superhero. Plus director Peyton Reed, returning after successfully pulling off the heist genre inAnt-Man, has a strong track record with rom-coms, blessing us with the iconic 2000 teen rom-com that wasBring It On(he’s also helmedThe Break-UpandYes Man). Evangeline Lilly may not be as experienced in the realm of rom-coms as her co-star and director — or even co-star Judy Greer — but her few scenes with Scott inAnt-Manprove that she can manage. Yes,Ant-Manwas severely lacking in relationship development and chemistry between Scott and Hope, jumping immediately to the two of them briefly kissing for the sake of the joke, but the sequel will hopefully will make up for that.
And then there’s the casting ofMichelle Pfeiffer as Hank Pym’s wife Janetand the first Wasp. It’s totally possible that I got distracted by Paul Rudd’s cute face and didn’t consider that the “rom-com” elements ofAnt-Man and the Waspcould refer to Hank and Janet’s tragic love story. And with Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer sharing the big screen together for the first time, it’s never a better time to stick them in a sweet rom-com subplot.
Listen, despite all of the articlesringing in the death of the genre, I won’t believe that the romantic-comedy is dead. The cheesy love story survives in other genres, like this year’sWonder Womanor in indie comedies likeThe Big Sick. Television shows are telling the best romantic-comedy stories since Bridget Jones wrote her last diary entry, with shows likeMaster of Nonedepicting sincere, affectionate love stories.
Here is Marvel’s official synopsis forAnt-Man and the Wasp:
From the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes a new chapter featuring heroes with the astonishing ability to shrink: Ant-Man and The Wasp. In the aftermath of Captain America: Civil War, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) grapples with the consequences of his choices as both a Super Hero and a father. As he struggles to rebalance his home life with his responsibilities as Ant-Man, he’s confronted by Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) with an urgent new mission. Scott must once again put on the suit and learn to fight alongside The Wasp as the team works together to uncover secrets from their past.
Ant-Man and the Waspis set to fly into theaters onJuly 6, 2018.
