Who's who in 'Ant-Man and the Wasp'
It's no Avengers: Infinity War but you still might want to catch up.
Ant-Man and the Wasp is a refreshing burst of joy from Marvel after April's universe-exploding showdown with Thanos. Set before and (technically during, though it's not really evident) during the events of Infinity War, the Ant-Man sequel confidently reasserts itself as Marvel's superhero comedy.
It's more of a character-driven story than Marvel's no-holds-barred ensemble blockbusters, which means there are fewer names to keep track of. Still, we thought it might be helpful to run through some of the new movie's (non-spoilery) key players so you can get all caught up on who everyone is and how they all connect.
Scott Lang a.k.a. Ant-Man
One of the movie's stars, and literally half its title. Scott Lang was once a small-time crook, but he found his inner hero when he connected with Hank Pym and put on the Ant-Man suit, which allows him to shrink down to sub-microscopic levels or grow to a towering height.
Hope van Dyne a.k.a The Wasp
The other half of the movie’s title, and the brains behind the titular duo. Hope van Dyne is the daughter of Janet van Dyne and Hank Pym. She spent the first Ant-Man on the sidelines, serving mostly as Scott’s mentor and love interest, but finally gets to suit up and kick ass herself in this sequel.
Hank Pym
Hank Pym is the co-inventor of the miniaturization/growth technology and was, in fact, the original Ant-Man. Although we've never seen his exploits chronicled on screen outside of flashbacks, Pym originally created Scott Lang's super-suit for himself.
Janet van Dyne
Collaborating scientist and the wife of Hank Pym. Also, the original Wasp. NBD. We learned in the first Ant-Man that Janet van Dyne was lost in the "Quantum Realm" while she and Hank were out superheroing. Hank thought her to be gone for good, but his experiences with Scott led him to see things differently. His renewed search for Janet seems to be a central piece of the plot in Ant-Man and the Wasp.
Cassie, Maggie, and Paxton
Cassie is Scott's daughter, and the reason he tries so hard to be a Good Guy. She lives with Scott's ex, Maggie, and her new guy, Paxton (who also happens to be a cop). Tensions within this fractured family were resolved at the end of Ant-Man, and it looks like daddy-daughter bonding moments come up a few times during Ant-Man and the Wasp.
Ghost
We don't know much about the movie version of Ghost. She wears a costume that looks like something out of the video game Destiny. She has the ability to phase through objects, but she doesn't seem to have total control over that power. We've seen nothing so far that suggests Ant-Man and the Wasp's Ghost mirrors the one from Marvel comics.
Luis, Dave, and Kurt
Luis is Scott's old prison buddy, and Dave and Kurt are former accomplices. All three reformed their ways when Scott took up the Ant-Man mantle. They mostly provided comic relief in the first movie and will probably fill the same role in this sequel. That's fine. Michael Peña's Luis especially is very funny and he deserves more screen time.
Sonny Burch
The Sonny Burch of the comics has connections to Tony Stark and Obadiah Stane. One of those men is dead and the other doesn't appear to play a role in this movie (but who knows?!). Comic book Burch is a high-level businessman and weapons deal. All we know of Ant-Man and the Wasp's version is he's a "low-level criminal type."
Bill Foster
Bill Foster is a former colleague of Hank's -- they're painted as rivals -- and he has some kind of personal connection to Ghost. It's not clear how he fits into this story, but Bill Foster of the comics went by a number of hero names, including Goliath, thanks to his ability to grow to enormous sizes. In one of the movie trailers, Foster mentions "Project Goliath" and brags about the height he managed to reach, so there are at least some similarities in this version of the character.
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
