In the five years since ANT-MAN AND THE WASP, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has evolved and changed. We saw Ant-Man and the Wasp again in AVENGERS: ENDGAME in 2019, but following the universe-altering events of that movie, Scott Lang and his extended family of characters have gone unseen.
So here's a quick refresher on the cast of characters in ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA. We cover those who are coming back from the previous movie(s) and those who are new to this story — at least the ones we know about and can discuss without spoilers.
Returning Characters
First up, some of the most important ANT-MAN 3 characters.
Ant-Man, aka Scott Lang (Paul Rudd)
Once a thief, then an Avenger, and now a celebrity and a father. It seems like QUANTUMANIA taps Lang's old criminal skills in some ways, and the movie certainly hangs on the idea that he has missed out on time with his family thanks to Thanos. Ant-Man can shrink and grow in size to great extremes. As this movie begins, we see that Scott has written a book, "Look Out for the Little Guy," about his time with the Avengers.
The Wasp, aka Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly)
Hope wanted to inherit the technology her father created, but it first went to Scott Lang. Hope and Scott have since worked as a hero team, with Hope suiting up as the Wasp. She leads the Pym van Dyne Foundation, which uses the Pym Particles for humanitarian efforts.
Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer)
We met Janet van Dyne, Hope's mother and wife of Hank Pym, in ANT-MAN AND THE WASP. She is the primary source of information about the Quantum Realm, where she spent much of her life, and our understanding is that she plays a significant role in this new movie.
Hank Pym (Michael Douglas)
The inventor of the Pym particles, which power Ant-Man's technology is also a former SHIELD agent. He was the original Ant-Man but has worked primarily as a physicist and researcher in his later years.
Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton)
We've seen Cassie Lang and different points in her life, played as a child by Abby Ryder Fortson and as a young teen by Emma Fuhrmann. Now Cassie takes a central role in both Scott's life and the new movie. She may also take on her own heroic persona in this movie, mirroring the character's development in comic book stories.
New Characters
Now we turn to the new characters in QUANTUMANIA, one of whom will be significant in the MCU for the next couple of years.
Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors)
We'll qualify Kang as "new" because we've met a different version of the character, known as He Who Remains, in the "Loki" streaming series. Kang is a time-traveler who is nearly able to exist at any point in time — all he needs is a few Pym particles to set his plan in motion. We expect to meet more than one version of the multiverse-hopping Kang in this movie but by the end there will probably be only one — Kang the Conquerer, who will be a problem for MCU heroes all the way through the next Avengers movie.
Veb (David Dastmalchian)
While David Dastmalchian has played the character Kurt in the previous two ANT-MAN movies, here he appears as Veb. We see the character briefly in one trailer, and he seems to be a gooey little snail-like creature encased in a human-sized mobile suit. "I am a character — a creature, a being — who exists in the Quantum Realm," Dastmalchian recently said. "He's surrounded by his friends, but they're under a lot of oppression from a very nasty individual who we know is going to cause a lot of problems for a lot of people. And I get to be part of the resistance. I hope things work out for Veb."
Quaz (William Jackson Harper)
Most of the details about Quaz, said to be a telepath, are murky at this point. Is he a version of the classic Marvel hero Quasar? Maybe! William Jackson Harper recently said "He's a bit of a freedom fighter, I guess. Things have been a little thorny down there and we're trying to set things right."
Jentorra (Katy O'Brian)
Like Veb and Quaz, Jentorra is a freedom fighter in the Quantum Realm. There's an old Marvel Comics character named Jentorra who may have inspired her, but we're not certain about how closely the two are related.
Krylar (Bill Murray)
Finally, when Scott Lang and team go into the Quantum Realm, they meet Krylar, the governor of a community called Axia. Janet van Dyne and Krylar know one another, and it seems like a story that Janet is not eager to revisit.
ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA opens on February 17.
All images courtesy of Marvel Studios.