With speculation as to the identity of Marvel’s 2014 mystery film running rampant throughout the Internet, a close eye has been cast on the activities of Edgar Wright. The famed director of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World has been working quietly with Marvel Studios on his pitch for an Ant-Man film, and THR has learned that he did in fact get the go-ahead recently, but it was only for a test reel.
Wright shot the test reel earlier this month in order to try out the tone and feel of the film, and as THR puts it, “decide how convincing Ant-Man’s powers look on screen.”
Ant-Man is a scientist named Hank Pym who discovers how to alter his size and uses those abilities with a special helmet that can control armies of ants. Pym was long-rumored to be a small part of the The Avengers as the character is known historically for being part of the super-squad.
Making an action film in which the main character is either drastically tiny or large can pose some challenges, so it’s no surprise that Marvel wants to see whether Wright can pull it off convincingly. He already wrote the script with oft-partner Joe Cornish.
Whatever Marvel decides to do with Wright’s Ant-Man, the director’s immediate plans are to shoot his third comedy starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost called The World’s End. That film will complete an unofficial trilogy of sorts that began with Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz.
Meanwhile, it’s looking more and more likely that Guardians of the Galaxy will be Marvel’s next big endeavor.
As always, we’ll keep you posted when we hear more.