Following yesterday's surprise announcement, the cast of Marvel's Ant-Man is shaping up steadily as the Edgar Wright-directed adaptation gears up for a May production start-date. Now The Wrap and other sources are reporting that Michael Pena, 38, has just entered early negotiations for a role in the film. While there's no word on who the Mexican-American actor will be playing or if he'll have super-abilities, The Hollywood Reporter reveals that the studio has been searching for a "tough Latino who has to be ready for a lot of physical play," and they were considering "actors ranging from Javier Bardem to Clifton Collins Jr." Also, Variety adds that the next major role to be cast in Ant-Man is the female lead: "Rashida Jones and Bryce Dallas Howard are names that have been mentioned but as of now no one has been offered the part." What do you think?
UPDATE: Bleeding Cool now claims to have been told that "the female lead of this film is the daughter of the second male lead. In light of the last day’s news, that pretty clearly marks her out as the offspring of Hank Pym." Perhaps, Janet Van Dyne will be Pym's daughter, and she'll link up with Scott Lang before eventually becoming The Wasp...
UPDATE #2 According to This Is Infamous' source, Peña will play a character known as a present-day Castillo, one of two villains in Ant-Man. "While it took awhile to piece together the timeline, our understanding is that Castillo will be the film’s villain in the beginning, which takes place in the 1960s. It is here that we’ll get our introduction to Ant-Man – the Hank Pym version – which Marvel readers will get from the character’s work as a spy fighting against Communism. From there, Ant-Man will move into the modern era, with an aging Pym, recently filled by Michael Douglas, and the beginning of the Scott Lang story arc, which will eventually get Scott Lang in as Ant-Man. Lang will encounter this second villain along the way, who will serve as his primary villain, but what we’re hearing is that Peña will wind up playing a larger role as the film develops, much more than just the opening to establish Ant-Man." Now what do you think?
Best known for his roles in Crash, World Trade Center, and Shooter, Michael Peña most recently starred in End of Watch, Gangster Squad and American Hustle. If negotiations progress, the actor will join Paul Rudd and Michael Douglas, with Ant-Man set for release on July 31, 2015!