By using one of its post-credits scenes, Ant-Man 3 was able to change the course of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
As the first film in the studio’s Phase 5 slate and the one that introduces Kang the Conqueror, the main antagonist of the Multiverse Saga, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has been hailed as a game-changer for Marvel.
Kang had the distinction of appearing as He Who Remains in Season 1 of Loki, the first Disney+ project to tease him. One of the earliest signs of how significant these streaming programs would be to the MCU as a whole was when Jonathan Majors‘ Multiversal villain appeared in the series.
Marvel Studios has only continued to use this TV-to-movie storytelling technique, creating ever-tighter links between their streaming and theatrical production.
Disney+ has been an excellent place for Marvel to expand its on-screen universe, whether it’s preparing the comeback of characters like Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin or hinting at Captain Marvel’s upcoming big-screen blockbuster.
Also, Read Ten Shang-Chi costume designs that were rejected in the MCU
Making MCU History Is Ant-Man 3’s Second Post-Credit Scene
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the first MCU film to use an entire scene from a Marvel Studios Disney+ TV series, making history in the process!
In the second post-credits scene of Ant-Man 3, a scene from Loki Season 2 is shown, in which Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and Mobius (Owen Wilson) attend a Victor Timely presentation (Jonathan Majors).
Marvel movies frequently film scenes particularly for use as stingers after the credits. Yet it’s not the first time an Ant-Man film has used a scene from another Marvel production for the post-credits sequence.
One of the post-credits scenes in the 2015 movie Ant-Man was a condensed scene from Captain America: Civil War, Marvel’s upcoming movie at the moment.
When Captain America: Civil War was published in 2016, the scene starring Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), and Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) was fully included. Ant-Man, played by Paul Rudd, also appeared in Civil War, but he was absent from the post-credits scene.
When Loki season 2 premieres, fans will be able to watch the second Ant-Man 3 post-credits sequence and learn just what makes Victor Timely so dangerous.
Despite not being the first big-screen film to explicitly mention a Marvel streaming project, Quantumania is the first to do so in a full Disney+ series scene. That distinction belongs to Spider-Man: No Way Home, whose post-credits scene—which served as a preview for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness—included a specific nod to WandaVision.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever accomplished something similar for Dominique Thorne’s Riri Williams/Ironheart, albeit not as overtly as a segment from a Disney+ series did within its theatrical length. Much of the foundations for the young heroine’s on-demand adventures were planted in Ryan Coogler’s Wakandan epic, which will be the subject of the young heroine’s upcoming Disney+ series Ironheart.
It will be interesting to see how this interconnection develops for Marvel Studios in the future. With shows like Secret Invasion maybe setting up The Marvels or Loki Season 2 creating the Mutliversal foundation for Deadpool 3, the inherent connection could prove significant.
The inclusion of Disney+ films in the MCU formula opens up a plethora of brand-new opportunities for future teases.
Ant-Man 3 Strengthens The MCU Films’ Connection To Disney+
Marvel’s post-credits scenes are renowned for tying together several works in the larger MCU. The post-credits scene’s connection between Ant-Man 3 and Loki season 2 only reinforces Marvel Studios’ dedication to tying the MCU together across all of its theatrical and streaming ventures.
The inclusion of a Loki reference in Ant-Man 3 makes sense for a variety of reasons. Not only is Loki season 2 anticipated to be one of the upcoming MCU projects on the release schedule, but both series also include Jonathan Majors, who is a shared actor between the two.
Majors, who plays all the several iterations of Kang in the MCU, has a bright future.
He has so far played Kang in Ant-Man 3 as Kang the Conqueror and Loki as He Who Remains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The actor’s subsequent MCU debut in Loki’s second season as Victor Timely has now also been built up by this post-credits scene.
Also, Read Update on Loki Season 2’s release date