After having been involved with the Marvel Cinematic Universe for almost ten years, a Marvel Studios actor veteran teases his end with the franchise.
One of the most established Hollywood actors in the Marvel Cinematic Universe may be foreshadowing his conclusion with the franchise. Following the end of The Infinity Saga, various actors have finished their run in the MCU, while Marvel Studios has introduced new heroes and villains into the franchise. However, as The Multiverse Saga is going forward, other veterans could be eying their potential final times as their respective characters in upcoming Marvel releases.
Appearing as a guest on The View recently, Michael Douglas opened up on his involvement with the MCU, following his latest time playing Hank Pym in the Ant-Man franchise. It turns out that Douglas had been pitching the idea of having his MCU hero killed off in Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania, looking at it as his exit from the MCU timeline, sharing the following:
This actually was my request for the third one. I said I’d like to have a serious [death], with all these great special effects. There’s got to be some fantastic way where I can shrink to an ant size and explode, whatever it is. I want to use all those effects. But, that was on the last one. Now, I don’t think I’m going to show up.
What Ending Hank Pym’s Story Would Mean For Ant-Man & The MCU
If the MCU ever were to kill Hank off, it would have a number of effects for the MCU, and not just the Ant-Man characters. Hank’s passing would obviously be a massive tragedy for Scott Lang, as well as Janet and Hope Van Dyne. However, the potential loss of Hank could theoretically give Janet a larger role in the MCU, if they decided to bring Michelle Pfeiffer back on a more regular basis.
A hypothetical scenario where Hank gets killed would also notably be another loss of a major MCU inventor, which would change the MCU much in the way Tony Stark’s passing in Avengers: Endgame did. While this would mean certain comic storylines that would have required Hank Pym’s scientific acumen would be without him, this could open up the floor for younger inventors like Ironheart, Shuri, or even Peter Parker to take more of the spotlight in this regard, letting the next generation take over a little more.
Even though Douglas thinks he is done with the MCU for now, time will tell if he will return in Phases 5 or 6. It wouldn’t be shocking if Hank is back at least one more time before the end of The Multiverse Saga, especially with rumors of Avengers: Secret Wars being set to be a soft reboot of the MCU. But for now, the audience can relive Douglas’ Ant-Man legacy in the MCU through Blu-Ray/DVD and on streaming.