Every Marvel Fan now knows that there are two movies that will be released before Avengers 4 hits the screens later next year. The movies in question are Ant-Man and the Wasp and Captain Marvel. When Marvel Studios announced these movies, everyone assumed that Ant-Man 2 and Captain Marvel will be set during the events taking place after Infinity War but before Avengers 4. Their release dates also gave credit to this theory. But as time passed by, we came to realize that we had assumed wrong.
Ant-Man and the Wasp and Captain Marvel will be based on events that preceded those of Avengers: Infinity War. The Timeline of these movies and their peculiar release dates force us to assume now that the moves are somehow related.
Fans have been trying to scratch up a connection ever since but to no avail. Well now we finally have an answer and it has something to do with the Quantum Realm. This theory explains how the Quantum Realm connects Captain Marvel and Ant-Man 2.
What is the Quantum Realm?
The Quantum Realm is the crux of a reality where time and space fail to exist in any form. It made its first appearance in Ant-Man. There are two ways of accessing the realm – via magic like Doctor Strange did or via Pym Particles. If you use enough Pym particles and shrink yourself to a subatomic size, you enter the Quantum Realm.
But the downside is you lose your sense of self and keep shrinking and there is no means of escape. Scott Lang was the first person to ever escape the Quantum Realm which means that Janet Van Dyne, who is still trapped within that reality, might still be alive.
After the events of Ant-Man, Hank Pym has made it his life’s work to find out a way to safely enter the Quantum, Realm and save his wife Janet Van Dyne, played by Michelle Pfeiffer. Pfeiffer’s role in the movie has been kept a secret but Ant-Man 2 will surely help us know how Janet finds her way to Avengers 4 which also features Hope Van Dyne in a minor role.
While Captain Marvel and Ant-Man 2 will both touch upon the Quantum Realm, the former is set about 30 years before Infinity War while the latter is set after the events of Civil War. Things are surely getting interesting.
Evangeline Lily, who plays Hope Van Dyne aka the Wasp in the MCU has this to say about working with Marvel head Kevin Feige:
“Frankly, if it wasn’t Kevin at the helm, I think I would be very, very nervous to be losing these pillars and the people who paved a way for characters like the Wasp. When he walked me through the general story arc of Infinity War, it dawned on me: oh, I understand now, we’re moving into this new Phase. The color of that new Phase can be clearly seen emerging through Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Thor: Ragnarok. It’s just a more colorful, more playful, heightened reality that we’re going to enter.”
She basically confirmed that both Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne will successfully travel in and out of the “Quantum realm” and had this to say:
“When I heard about Infinity War and the direction that they’re heading, I did have this moment of realizing, oh, wow, there’s a bit of a déjà vu for me with the Lost franchise. We are hitting that [Lost] Season 4 space where everything’s about to shift, and you’re about to lose the solid ground underneath you. And [Ant-Man and the Wasp], of course, will play a part in that,” she explained.
“In Ant-Man and the Wasp, they are trying everything in their power to safely enter the Quantum Realm and return back from it because they have evidence from the first film that Scott Lang was able to do that. If he can do it, why can’t we? If we do succeed in Ant-Man and the Wasp, then that does open a whole entire new multi-verse to enter into and play around in. I’m not the story creator, so I can’t tell you what they’re going to do with that. But I definitely see the potential there.”
The Quantum Realm is the common connection that will tie up all the loose ends left after the events of Infinity War. How, do you ask? Well….the Quantum Realm can help you travel through time
It is a well-established fact that the Avengers 4 will be a time travel movie. It will at the very least be a movie where the surviving Avengers use a means of exploring the time stream via an alternate reality or dimension.
Long dead characters like Crossbones and Agent Sitwell have been spotted on the sets of Avengers 4. Paul Rudd is also seen along with Steve Rogers donning his classic 2012 costume from The Avengers on set.
Combine this with the fact that Captain Marvel has been absent from the MCU since 30 years but will soon find herself in Avengers 4 alive and well all points to the fact that Avengers 4 will include time travel and they will most probably do it through the Quantum Realm, where time flows differently.
This is the exact weapon the Avengers need to defeat Thanos. Without the Time Stone, the Quantum Realm could act as a gateway through time, enabling the Avenger to undo the mistakes of Thanos and save the whole universe.
Both of them were missing in action in the Infinity War where Thanos came with his army and overpowered Avengers and Guardians. He managed to collect six Infinity Stones, assembled them in a gauntlet and snapped his fingers to wipe out half the life in the universe. Here’s the official synopsis:
“Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk and the rest of the Avengers unite to battle their most powerful enemy yet — the evil Thanos. On a mission to collect all six Infinity Stones, Thanos plans to use the artifacts to inflict his twisted will on reality. The fate of the planet and existence itself has never been more uncertain as everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment”.
Both Ant-Man and Captain Marvel will have an important role in Avengers 4. On one hand, the Ant-Man wasn’t there as he supposedly accepted the deal offered by the government. On the other hand, Captain Marvel is caught in the crossfire between two alien empires Kree and Skrulls, but she now knows about what Thanos has done as Nick Fury sent her a distress signal before he turned to ash.
Ant-Man and the Wasp will be released on July 6, 2018. Directed by Peyton Reed and produced by Marvel Studios. The screenplay is written by Paul Rudd, Gabriel Ferrari, Chris McKenna and Andre Barrer.
The official synopsis reads:
“Scott Lang is grappling with the consequences of his choices as both a superhero and a father. Approached by Hope van Dyne and Dr. Hank Pym, Lang must once again don the Ant-Man suit and fight alongside the Wasp. The urgent mission soon leads to secret revelations from the past as the dynamic duo finds itself in an epic battle against a powerful new enemy”.
The next movie lined up is Captain Marvel which is going to be released on March 8, 2019. Directed by Anne Boden and Ryan Fleck. The movie is set in 1990’s featuring Kree-Skrull war. Starring Brie Larson as Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel, Jude Law as Dr. Walter Lawson aka Mar-Vell. Here’s official movie synopsis:
“The story follows Carol Danvers as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races. Set in the 1990s, “Captain Marvel” is an all-new adventure from a previously unseen period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”
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