But what does this mean for 'Black Panther' and 'Captain Marvel'?
Guess all that worrying we did about The Wasp was for nothing, huh?
Not only did the O.G. Wasp, Janet van Dyne, make a surprise appearance in Ant-Man, Marvel’s weirdest movie yet, but her daughter, Hope (Evangeline Lilly) inherited the mantle at the end of the movie. Now, the Wasp’s role in the MCU is getting even bigger: Marvel has announced an Ant-Man sequel, titled Ant-Man and the Wasp.
WATCH: 13 'Ant-Man' Easter Eggs You May Have Missed (Like, Spider-Man!)
“Following our hero’s debut adventure in this summer’s Ant-Man, Scott Lang will return alongside Hope Van Dyne on July 6, 2018 with Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp,” Marvel Studios said in a statement. “The sequel will mark the first Marvel Studios film named after its heroine.”
Or any heroine!
While the boys -- Captain America and Thor and Iron Man -- have lent their names to dozens of movies already, female heroes like Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and newcomer Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) have yet to even co-lead a movie. The first female hero set to get a movie named after her was Captain Marvel in 2018. (More on that in a minute.)
It’s not surprising that Marvel wants to squeeze in an Ant-Man sequel -- the first performed well at the box office and was critically praised. It’s also not surprising they would promote Lilly’s Wasp to titular status. Fans have been clamoring for female heroes to have a larger presence in the MCU, and the post-credits scene in Ant-Man already set Hope up with a super suit to fight crime alongside Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang.
MORE: Here’s What That Other Epic Post-Credit Scene in 'Ant-Man' Means
There’s a bit more good news: With the addition of Ant-Man and the Wasp, the Black Panther movie has been moved up about five months, now premiering Feb. 16, 2018. Recent reports say that Joe Robert Cole will write the script, while Straight Outta Compton director F. Gary Gray may be in the running to direct after Selma’s Ava Duvernay passed.
As well as some bad news: Captain Marvel is now being delayed another four months, with a new release date of March 8, 2019. Which means the long wait to finally -- finally! -- see Carol Danvers on the big screen just got a little longer. But if Marvel were to, say, announce that Emily Blunt has been cast as Captain Marvel, we might just forgive them.
And just some more news: We’re not sure if it’s good or bad yet. Marvel also announced three untitled MCU films will premiere on May 1, 2020, July 10, 2020, and Nov. 6, 2020. Another Spider-Man installment, probably? Maybe Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3? How about Doctor Strange: The Eternity Saga or a version of Marvel’s House of M? Or a rebooted Captain America, with the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) or Falcon (Anthony Mackie) taking on the title?
Actually, give us all of those, please!
Now, find out what else Lilly has to say about “powerful, no-nonsense” Hope:
