The Ant-Man franchise has always been pretty low stakes, but that looks set to change with Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania.
Following his introduction in Loki, Jonathan Majors is expected to center stage as the villainous Kang the Conqueror, and that's bad news for these heroes and the wider MCU. Today, a revealing plot leak from reliable sources has found its way online, and it offers a much clearer idea of plans for that villain and some of the threequel's other leads.
While it doesn't cover all the bases (such as Cassie Lang's role in the story), there's an awful lot to delve into here, including intel on an appearance from the classic villain you see in the banner above. However, you shouldn't need us to tell you that we're getting into MAJOR SPOILERS here!
With that in mind, you'll need to click on the NEXT button below to read through this breakdown...
Quantum Realm Flashbacks
Ant-Man and The Wasp glossed over Janet Van Dyne's time in the Quantum Realm, but that looks set to change with this film.
It turns out Janet met and got to know Kang while stuck there, and she can now sense that the villain is up to no good. As you might expect, he wants to take over the Quantum Realm in an effort to control the very centre of time (Avengers: Endgame showed how easy that dimension makes it to traverse the Multiverse through time travel).
We're assuming this is the MCU's Kang and not a younger version of He Who Remains, but that's not made clear in this leak. What we do know is the villain has some opposition.
An Epic War
Janet takes Hank, Scott, and Hope into the Quantum Realm to visit "Q Kingdom." This was where she called home during the long years she spent trapped, and it's because of that Janet can now sense what's going on with Kang's machinations.
Once there, they meet King Krylar, played by Ghostbusters legend Bill Murray.
This obscure comic book character once guided The Hulk on a trip through the "Micro-Verse," so you can probably figure out for yourselves how he's been reimagined for the MCU. Krylar is determined to defeat Kang, and is looking to raise an army to stop the villain.
It sounds like Janet and Krylar had a thing while she was living in the Quantum Realm, making their interactions a little weird (especially now she's been reunited with Hank).
Yellowjacket Returns...As M.O.D.O.K.!
The rumors are supposedly true, as Corey Stoll reprises the role of Darren Cross after being sent into the Quantum Realm in 2015's Ant-Man.
We'd assumed the villain had died after being crushed into nothingness, but it seems he was rebuilt by Kang and transformed into M.O.D.O.K. Now Kang's second in command, he's looking for revenge and keen to deliver his wrath upon Scott and Hank for their role in his gross new status quo.
While this is happening, Krylar successfully raises an army of Quantum Realm creatures and Kang is defeated...after he's betrayed by M.O.D.O.K.
It turns out the duplicitous villain had his own plan all along!
A Massive Cliffhanger
Things get a little vague at this stage, but M.O.D.O.K. supposedly depowers Kang and traps him in the Quantum Realm alongside Hank, Scott, Janet, and Hope.
With that, the villain makes his way back to Earth, and our heroes - and their enemy - are left with seemingly no hope of salvation. Remember, the last time Scott was trapped there, he emerged hours later to find that years had passed. Could a team-up with Kang be the only way to escape a similar fate?
It's important to remember that there are countless Kang Variants, though it's yet to be established whether the MCU being the "Sacred Timeline" makes it a target for the villain. Either way, this is likely to be the first of many Kangs we see in action over the next few years.
Confused? Us too, but remember that this is only a very vague breakdown. We do, however, have some extra details for you!
Some Additional Details
This Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania leak was first shared by scooper DanielRPK, though reliable leaker MyTimeToShineHello would later add at least a little context.
She believes that Janet and Krylar don't have a romantic history and explains that they meet for the first time in the present day (that's a subplot we're guessing has been changed one way or the other through reshoots). As for the ending, the heroes are definitely getting stuck there, but how it happens might play out a little differently.
No post-credits scenes were shown at these apparent test screenings, though there is some disappointing feedback on Kang.
Apparently, he's not a great villain and ends up being "underused" in the threequel. Seeing as he's shaping up to be the next Thanos, fingers crossed Marvel Studios makes a few changes before the movie hits theaters.