"Initially, I was like, no way. No way," laughs Evangeline Lilly when asked about her first reaction to being offered the chance to join the cast of Marvel's Ant-Man. "And then they said, ‘Paul Rudd’s playing the lead.’ And I was like, ‘Oh shit. I love Paul Rudd. I really want to work with him!’ So I was like, ‘OK, well, send me the script. I’ll read it and I’ll consider it.’ And then I started watching Marvel [Studios] movies, which I hadn’t done before. … I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to movies — like, the popcorn-munching movies, I never go see them. I was pleasantly surprised. I thought, these are actually incredible — they’re making fantastic films." There has obviously been some controversy about the decision to focus on Scott Lang in the movie, with an older Hank Pym taking a mentor-like role. However, it sounds as if he'll still play a key part in Ant-Man!
"I thought Edgar’s idea to blend the [Hank and Scott] stories was brilliant," Lilly adds. "You’re going to have fans up there who insist that you tell the story of Hank Pym, and fans up there who will be more on the Scott Lang side of it. … I think we are going to come close to pleasing them all. And what’s cool is that, you know, Janet Van Dyne is my mom. Hank Pym is my father. I was raised by two superheroes. I’m no schlump. I’m a pretty smart, competent, capable, kick-ass female. She’s very cool." That should help put the minds of some fans at ease then, but how did she feel about Edgar Wright's departure? "I thought, Well, if Marvel are big bullies, and they just want a puppet and not someone with a vision, I’m not interested in being in this movie."
The actress then goes on to reveal that she had not signed her contract when the news hit that the Shaun of the Dead director had parted ways with Marvel, and that she very nearly walked away from Ant-Man altogether. However, she waited for the studio to send her the new script - written by Adam McKay and Paul Rudd - and it was then that she understood why Wright may not have been the right man of the job. "I finally got the script literally the day before I was supposed to go in for fittings. I said, ‘I’m not going to do my fitting until I see the script.’ I saw with my own eyes that Marvel had just pulled the script into their world. I mean, they’ve established a universe, and everyone has come to expect a certain aesthetic [and] a certain feel for Marvel films. And what Edgar was creating was much more in the Edgar Wright camp of films. They were very different."
"And I feel like, if [Marvel] had created Edgar’s incredible vision — which would have been, like, classic comic book — it would have been such a riot to film [and] it would have been so much fun to watch. [But] it wouldn’t have fit in the Marvel Universe. It would have stuck out like a sore thumb, no matter how good it was. It just would have taken you away from this cohesive universe they’re trying to create. And therefore it ruins the suspended disbelief that they’ve built." It sounds then like Edgar Wright's Ant-Man probably wouldn't have been all that different from Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, a fun movie, but a box office flop. It's a shame we'll never get to see his take, but it's fair to say most fans would prefer seeing Ant-Man exist in the same world as The Avengers rather than something so unique it would have stuck out like a sore thumb. Right?