Earlier in the week we heard some comments from Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige about Peyton Reed (Down with Love) being the right man to succeed Edgar Wright on the Phase Three-launching Ant-Man, and now the producer has spoken candidly to The Guardian about the reasons for Wright’s departure from the project:
“We sat round a table and we realised it was not working. A part of me wishes we could have figured that out in the eight years we were working on it. But better for us and for Edgar that we figure it out then, and not move it through production. We said let’s do this together and put out a statement. What do we say? ‘Creative differences’. I said: ‘That’s what they always say and no-one ever believes it.’ Edgar said: ‘But in this case it’s true … ‘”
“The Marvel movies are very collaborative, and I think they are more collaborative than what he had been used to,” continued Feige. “And I totally respect that. [But] the notion that Marvel was scared, the vision was too good, too far out for Marvel is not true. And I don’t want to talk too much about that because I think our movies speak to that. Go look at Iron Man 3; go look at The Winter Soldier; go see Guardians of the Galaxy later this month. It would have to be really out there to be too out there for us.”
Feige went on to reiterate that Ant-Man is in safe hands with Peyton Reed, stating that: “Peyton is going to do a tremendous job and the cast is tremendously dedicated and the script is getting into amazing shape. You wouldn’t expect a producer to say anything different, but when that movie comes out it will be the absolute best version of Ant-Man that could have existed. The biggest disappointment for me is just the relationship, because I like Edgar very, very much and we were very close for many many years. But the perception that the big evil studio was too scared at the outside-the-box creative vision is just not the case.”
So, what do you make of those comments?
Ant-Man is set for release on July 17th 2015, with Reed directing a cast that includes Paul Rudd (Anchorman), Michael Douglas (Last Vegas), Patrick Wilson (Watchmen), Evangeline Lilly (The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug), Corey Stoll (House of Cards), Michael Pena (Cowboys & Aliens), Matt Gerald (Dexter), Kevin Weisman (Hello Ladies) and David Dastmalchian (The Dark Knight).
Originally published July 18, 2014. Updated April 12, 2018.
