Adam McKay Considered to Replace Edgar Wright for Ant-Man: 'Anchorman' Director Close to Deal With Marvel Studios
When news broke of Edgar Wright's departure from long-term Marvel project "Ant-Man," fans panicked about the direction the film goes in. Producers promised that the film would keep its scheduled release next summer, and that a new director would be found shortly.
A week later it looks like we have our director. Variety reports that Marvel Studios is close to signing a deal with Adam McKay, the director of comedies such as "Anchorman" and "Talledega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby."
McKay was likely chosen in part with his good relationship with Paul Rudd, who is slated to star in the new film, which kicks off Phase Three of the scheduled films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Despite the production hang-ups, Rudd is still staying on, along with fellow co-stars Michael Douglas, Patrick Wilson and Evangeline Lilly.
Others involved however jumped ship after Edgar Wright abandoned the project. According to the Hollywood Reporter, there is some fear that the film will not be ready by its original release date.
"Sources say the film's key crew -- its heads of departments -- departed when it became clear production would not begin as scheduled July 28," read the article. "Rudd's reps say he's still in, and a source close to the production says all key crew positions will be filled shortly."
The primary reason given for Edgar Wright leaving seems to be a creative dispute over the film's script. Marvel was unhappy with Wright's version of the script, forcing several rewrites. Wright accepted initial revisions, but left after further changes were made without his input.
Skeptics of Wright's replacement will be happy to learn Adam McKay is fan of comic books himself. He has long been working on getting a film adaptation of "The Boys", a comic book series about a super-powered CIA team that keeps superheroes in check. McKay will have to put that project on hold as he takes on Ant-Man.
Ant-Man tells the story of Hank Pym, a superhero with the ability to shrink in size and communicate with insects. The movie is scheduled for release on July 17, 2015.