1. Overview
Scott Edward Harris Lang, commonly known by his alias Ant-Man, is a fictional character portrayed by Paul Rudd in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) media franchise. The character is based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. In Thai, he is known as สกอตต์ แลงScott LangThai. Lang is depicted as a thief who transforms into a superhero after gaining access to Hank Pym's advanced technology and training, specifically a suit that allows him to change size and communicate with ants. His journey leads him to be recruited by Steve Rogers to join the Avengers. Following the Blip, Scott's unique experience in the Quantum Realm becomes crucial, laying the groundwork for time travel as a means to undo Thanos' actions. He plays a significant role in the Avengers' efforts to restore lost lives and participates in the final battle against Thanos, eventually reuniting with his girlfriend Hope van Dyne and daughter Cassie. As of 2024, Scott Lang has appeared in five MCU films, and alternate versions of the character, also portrayed by Rudd, appear in *Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania* and the animated series *What If...?*.
2. Fictional character biography
Scott Lang's life undergoes significant transformations throughout his appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, evolving from a former systems engineer and petty criminal into a pivotal superhero within the Avengers.
2.1. Early life
Scott Lang graduated from the MIT with a engineering degree. However, he later turned to a life of crime, driven by a desire to punish a corporation that had swindled its customers. While he was incarcerated, his wife, Maggie, divorced him and was granted custody of their daughter, Cassie.
2.2. Becoming Ant-Man
In 2015, Scott was released on parole and moved in with his former cellmate, Luis. He made an unannounced visit to Cassie, which resulted in him being chastised by Maggie and her fiancé, police detective Jim Paxton, for failing to provide child support. Unable to secure stable employment due to his criminal record, Scott agreed to join Luis and his crew, Dave and Kurt, in a burglary. Acting on a tip, Scott broke into a house and successfully cracked its safe. To his surprise, he discovered and stole an old motorcycle suit. Upon trying it on, he unexpectedly shrunk to the size of an insect. Startled, he returned the suit to the house but was subsequently arrested. He was then broken out of jail by the homeowner, Hank Pym.
Hank Pym revealed that he had previously operated as the superhero known as Ant-Man and had deliberately manipulated Scott into stealing the suit as a test. Hank explained his intention for Scott to steal the Yellowjacket suit from his former protégé, Darren Cross, who had successfully reverse-engineered Hank's technology. Hank and his daughter, Hope van Dyne, then began combat training Scott in the proper use of the Ant-Man suit, and how to control ants. During this training, Hank disclosed that Hope's mother, Janet van Dyne, had disappeared into the subatomic Quantum Realm over 30 years prior while disabling a Soviet nuclear missile. Hank cautioned Scott that he could suffer a similar fate if he overrode his suit's regulator.
Scott was dispatched to steal a device from the Avengers Compound in New York, where he encountered and briefly fought Sam Wilson. Scott, along with his crew and a swarm of flying ants, infiltrated Pym Technologies' headquarters during a ceremony where Cross unveiled his perfected Yellowjacket suit. Scott and Hope successfully neutralized Hydra agents at the event and detonated explosives, causing the building to implode. Cross, donning the Yellowjacket suit, took Cassie hostage at her house to lure Scott into a confrontation. Scott, in a desperate move, overrode the regulator and shrunk to subatomic size to penetrate Cross' suit, sabotaging it and ultimately defeating Cross. Scott then disappeared into the Quantum Realm but managed to reverse the effects and returned to the macroscopic world. Out of gratitude for Scott saving Cassie, Paxton covered for him to prevent his return to prison. After being invited to dinner with Cassie, Maggie, and Paxton, Scott received a call from Luis, who informed him that Wilson was looking for him.
2.3. Recruited by Steve Rogers
In 2016, Scott Lang was picked up by Clint Barton and Wanda Maximoff and transported to Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany. There, he was introduced to Steve Rogers, who had gone rogue following the implementation of the Sokovia Accords, as well as Wilson and Bucky Barnes. Before they could depart, they were confronted by Tony Stark, Natasha Romanoff, James Rhodes, T'Challa, Peter Parker, and Vision. During the ensuing conflict, Scott utilized his suit to grow to an enormous size, becoming Giant-Man, which allowed Rogers and Barnes to escape in the Quinjet. Scott was subsequently taken down by Parker, Stark, and Rhodes, captured by Thaddeus Ross, and sent to the Raft floating prison alongside Wilson, Barton, and Maximoff. They were later freed by Rogers and Romanoff. Scott, along with Barton, negotiated a deal with Ross and the U.S. government, resulting in a term of house arrest. A video recorded by Peter Parker during the Berlin Airport fight, shown at the beginning of *Spider-Man: Homecoming*, includes a glimpse of Ant-Man in his giant form from a different angle.
2.4. Working with the Wasp
In 2018, Scott discovered he had unknowingly become entangled with Janet van Dyne after receiving an apparent message from her from within the Quantum Realm. Scott contacted Hank Pym about Janet, leading Hank and Hope to kidnap Scott, leaving a decoy to avoid suspicion from FBI agent Jimmy Woo. They began working to construct a stable tunnel that would allow them to take a vehicle into the Quantum Realm and retrieve Janet. They arranged to purchase a necessary part for the tunnel from black market dealer Sonny Burch, who, realizing the potential profit from Hank's research, double-crossed them. Wasp fought off Burch and his men until she was attacked by a quantumly unstable masked woman. Scott attempted to assist, but the woman escaped with Hank's lab, which had been shrunk to the size of a suitcase. Hank's estranged former partner, Bill Foster, helped them locate the lab, where the "Ghost" captured the trio and revealed herself to be Ava Starr. Her father, Elihas, another of Hank's former partners, had died along with his wife during an experiment that caused Starr's unstable condition.
Foster revealed that Starr was dying and in constant pain due to her condition, and they planned to cure her using Janet's quantum energy. Believing this would harm Janet, Hank refused to help them and escaped with Hope, Scott, and the lab. Opening a stable version of the tunnel, Hank, Hope, and Scott were able to contact Janet, who provided a precise location to find her but warned that they only had two hours before the realm's unstable nature would separate them. Scott returned home before Woo arrived, while Hank and Hope were arrested by the FBI, allowing Starr to take the lab. Scott broke Hank and Hope out of custody, and they recovered the lab with Luis' help. Starr, Burch, and his men attacked, but Hank and Janet returned safely from the Quantum Realm. Janet voluntarily gifted some of her energy to Starr to temporarily stabilize her. Scott returned home once again, just in time for a now suspicious Woo to release him from house arrest. Later, using a smaller quantum tunnel built in Luis' van, Hank, Janet, Hope, and Scott planned to harvest quantum energy particles to help Starr remain stable. Scott returned to the Quantum Realm, but as he was about to be brought out, he suddenly became trapped due to Thanos' actions in *Avengers: Infinity War*.
2.5. Time Heist
In 2023, Scott was unexpectedly released from the Quantum Realm after a rat inadvertently activated the quantum tunnel, finding himself and the van in a storage warehouse. He quickly learned about the Blip and rushed to Cassie's house, discovering she was still alive. After being informed of the devastating events, Scott drove the van to the Compound. He explained to Rogers and Romanoff that he had experienced only five hours within the Quantum Realm, theorizing it could serve as a means of time travel. The trio visited Stark at his house to explain their plan for a "Time Heist" to steal the Infinity Stones from alternate timelines and use them to undo the Blip, but Stark initially refused. They then met with Bruce Banner at a diner, and he agreed to help them at the Compound. However, their initial attempts at time travel were unsuccessful, as Scott was inadvertently turned into a baby, a child, and an elderly man. Stark later relented and arrived to assist.
Once Thor, Rocket Raccoon, Nebula, Rhodes, and Barton returned to the Compound, they formulated a comprehensive plan. Scott joined Banner, Rogers, and Stark, traveling to New York City during Loki's invasion in 2012. Scott's attempt to steal the Space Stone went awry, necessitating Rogers and Stark to travel to another universe in 1970 to retrieve both the Space Stone and additional Pym Particles. Banner then successfully restored the trillions of lost lives. However, an alternate Thanos from 2014 arrived and attacked the Compound. After saving Rocket, Banner, and Rhodes from drowning, Scott participated in the final battle, killing Cull Obsidian during the conflict and briefly reuniting with a restored Hope. Following Stark's sacrifice to save them, Scott returned home and spent more time with Hope and Cassie. Approximately a week later, Scott, along with Hope and a restored Hank and Janet, attended Stark's funeral.
2.6. Encounter with Kang
In 2025, Scott had written and released a memoir titled Look Out for the Little Guy. By 2026, he was frequently recognized and greeted by strangers in the city, with store patrons and others often paying for his coffee or meals. He also maintained a friendship with Woo. After a book signing at a bookstore, he was notified by the SFPD and went to the station to pick up Cassie, who had shrunk a police car while attempting to assist a Blip-displaced homeless camp. They then returned to Pym's house for dinner, where Cassie revealed that she, Hope, and Hank had been collaborating on a quantum satellite in the basement.
Upon opening the satellite, a portal unexpectedly opened, pulling Hank and Janet into the Quantum Realm. Hope, Cassie, and Scott followed them. Scott and Cassie were separated from the others and encountered various species of beings inhabiting the Quantum Realm. Scott was informed that someone was looking for him due to his association with Janet and was eventually captured by soldiers and Darren Cross, who had survived their previous encounter and had mutated into a cybernetically enhanced individual with an oversized head known as M.O.D.O.K.. Scott and Cassie were placed in prison holding cells and eventually met Kang the Conqueror.
Kang interrogated Scott, revealing that he needed Scott to reclaim a multiversal power core that fueled his ship, which would enable Kang to escape the Quantum Realm. Scott initially refused but later made a deal with Kang to spare Cassie's life. While attempting to retrieve the multiversal core, Scott encountered many other variants of himself. With Hope's assistance, Scott managed to shrink the engine back to its normal size.
Kang forcefully took the engine from Scott without returning Cassie, breaking their agreement, and began his attempt to escape. After Scott and Hope tried to fight back, Kang knocked them unconscious. Hank Pym then arrived with ants that had lived in the Quantum Realm, which had grown significantly smarter due to their environment and technology. Scott, Hope, and Hank then made their way to Kang's empire to prevent his escape and rescue Cassie.
Scott engaged in a brief fight with Kang until the ants swarmed Kang, providing Scott enough time to stop the ship from powering up. Janet was able to open a portal for them to escape, but before Scott could pass through, he was confronted by Kang. Kang overpowered Scott and nearly killed him, but Hope intervened, saving Scott. Together, they knocked Kang into the engine, seemingly killing him. Scott and Hope then passed through the portal and exited the Quantum Realm. Days later, Scott returned to his normal life but became paranoid, recalling Kang's warning that he was preventing something worse from happening. He began to question if Kang was truly dead or if he had inadvertently caused a greater catastrophe, only to shrug off these thoughts and attend a birthday party for Cassie to make up for the times he missed during the Blip.
2.7. Alternate versions
Other versions of Scott Lang are depicted in the alternate realities of the MCU multiverse, where they are also portrayed by Paul Rudd.
2.7.1. Zombie outbreak
In an alternate 2018, following Janet van Dyne and Hank Pym's return from the Quantum Realm, Lang was attacked and transformed into a zombie by the pair, who had been infected with a quantum zombie virus. Later, Vision discovered the zombified Lang and transported him to Camp Lehigh, where he cured him using the Mind Stone; however, Vision was only able to preserve Lang's head in a jar. When a group of survivors, including Lang's friend Kurt, arrived at the camp, Lang was aided by the Cloak of Levitation and escaped with Peter Parker and T'Challa to Wakanda.
2.7.2. 1602
In an alternate 1602, Lang, Bucky Barnes, and Rogers Hood operated as a Merry Men-type group. After intercepting a carriage carrying Loki, they encountered Captain Peggy Carter. Lang accompanied them to a pub, which was subsequently attacked by Sir Harold "Happy" Hogan, the Royal Yellowjackets, and the Destroyer, who were searching for Carter. Lang expressed annoyance that the Royal Yellowjackets had stolen his shrinking techniques. After escaping, Lang, Rogers, and Barnes met with Carter, Tony Stark, and Bruce Banner to devise a plan to save the universe from an incursion. Lang, Barnes, Rogers, and Carter disguised themselves and infiltrated King Thor's court palace. Once Stark arrived with his device and Carter had seized the Scepter containing the Time Stone, they discovered that Rogers was the cause of the incursion. Carter used the Stone to send him back, which also caused Lang and the others to return to their respective universes.
2.7.3. Probability Storm
In 2026, Earth-616 Scott Lang was brought back into the Quantum Realm and tasked by Kang the Conqueror to retrieve a Multiversal power core using his Pym Particles discs. As Earth-616 Lang entered the Quantum nexus, he encountered a probability storm, where he met infinite variants of himself, including one Lang who had never become Ant-Man and was merely a Baskin Robbins employee, and another Lang in giant form undergoing spaghettification.
2.7.4. Void victim
In another universe, Scott Lang was pruned by the Time Variance Authority and sent to the Void at the End of Time, where he died while in his giant form. His skeletal remains were subsequently used by Cassandra Nova and her forces as a base.
3. Concept, creation and casting
The character of Ant-Man was originally created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby, first appearing in *Tales to Astonish* #35 in September 1962. The initial persona was that of the brilliant scientist Hank Pym, who adopted the superhero alias after inventing a substance that could change size. Pym decided to become a superhero after his first wife was killed by corrupt secret police agents during the Cold War. He developed a chemical substance, which he named Pym Particles, allowing the user to alter his size. He also equipped himself with a helmet capable of controlling ants, enabling him to shrink to insect size to solve crimes and apprehend criminals as the mystery-solving Ant-Man. Pym later shared his discovery with his new girlfriend Janet van Dyne, who became his crime-fighting partner, The Wasp. The duo eventually became founding members of the Avengers, combating recurring enemys such as Pym's own robotic creation, Ultron.
Scott Lang, in the comic books, was a thief who became Ant-Man after stealing the Ant-Man suit to save his daughter, Cassandra "Cassie" Lang, from a heart condition. After reforming from his life of crime, Scott pursued a full-time career as Ant-Man with the encouragement of Hank Pym. He became an affiliate of the Fantastic Four and later a full-time member of the Avengers.
In the mid-2000s, Kevin Feige recognized that Marvel still held the rights to the core members of the Avengers, which included Ant-Man. Feige, a fanboy, envisioned creating a shared universe, mirroring the approach taken by creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby with their comic books in the early 1960s. In 2005, Marvel secured a 525.00 M USD investment from Merrill Lynch, which enabled them to independently produce ten films, including *Ant-Man*. Edgar Wright began developing a live-action film based on the Marvel Comics superhero Ant-Man with Joe Cornish in 2006. However, in May 2014, Wright and Marvel Studios issued a joint statement announcing Wright's departure from the project due to creative differences. Wright later explained that he had been hired as both writer and director but became dissatisfied when Marvel desired a new script. He stated in 2017, "The most diplomatic answer is I wanted to make a Marvel movie but I don't think they really wanted to make an Edgar Wright movie... having written all my other movies, that's a tough thing to move forward. Suddenly becoming a director for hire on it, you're sort of less emotionally invested and you start to wonder why you're there, really."
Wright was replaced by Peyton Reed as director, with Adam McKay and star Paul Rudd rewriting the screenplay. Wright and Cornish received both screenplay and story credits, with Wright also credited as executive producer. Regarding Rudd's casting, producer Kevin Feige commented that Rudd could portray "slightly unsavory things like break into people's houses and still be charming and who you root for and whose redemption you will find satisfaction in." Director Peyton Reed compared Scott to George Clooney's character Danny Ocean from *Ocean's Eleven*, describing him as "a guy trying to create a new life for himself and find redemption." Rudd signed a multi-film contract with Marvel, which Feige described as "three [films]-plus-plus to appear in other things." To prepare for the role, Rudd worked with trainers and eliminated alcohol, fried foods, and carbohydrates from his diet for approximately a year, adopting what he called the "Chris Pratt approach to training for an action movie."
In *Captain America: Civil War*, Rudd's Ant-Man suit was depicted as "streamlined and more high-tech" compared to the one seen in *Ant-Man*. This reflected the character's integration into a larger, more technologically advanced superhero world.
A notable difference between the comic books and the MCU is Hank Pym's role within the Avengers. In the comics, Hank Pym's Ant-Man is a founding member of the Avengers. However, in the MCU, Pym initially harbors a deep distrust of the Avengers, particularly Tony Stark. No iteration of Ant-Man becomes involved with the Avengers until Scott Lang teams up with Steve Rogers during the events of *Captain America: Civil War*, and Scott does not become an official Avenger until the events of *Avengers: Endgame*. Furthermore, in MCU continuity, Ultron was created by Stark and Bruce Banner, rather than by Pym as in the comic books.
4. Characterization
Scott Lang's first onscreen appearance came in 2015 with the release of *Ant-Man*. The film portrays Scott as a former systems engineer at VistaCorp and a petty criminal who becomes the successor to Hank Pym as Ant-Man, when Pym allows him to acquire a suit that enables him to shrink in size but simultaneously increase in strength. Scott then embarks on a journey of transformation from a petty criminal into a hero by confronting Darren Cross / Yellowjacket.
In *Captain America: Civil War*, Scott is recruited to fight alongside Captain America's team of the Avengers, opposing Iron Man's faction of the Avengers and the Sokovia Accords. During the ensuing battle, he reveals that he can not only shrink using the Pym Particles but also grow to giant-sized proportions, although doing so places significant stress on his body. *Ant-Man* director Peyton Reed had extensive discussions with the Russo brothers, directors of *Civil War*, regarding the character and the filming of certain sequences to ensure continuity within the shared universe. Kevin Feige explained the decision to have Scott grow into Giant-Man during the airport battle, stating it was "just a great idea to turn the tide of the battle in a huge, shocking, unexpected way." He added that while they had many ideas for *Ant-Man and the Wasp*, none were contingent upon revealing Giant-Man, so they considered this an "unbelievable unexpected way to do that." Anthony Russo further elaborated that the transformation was a continuation of Scott's character arc from *Ant-Man*, emphasizing that Scott was "just really impressed with Captain America, he just wants to deliver and he figures out a way to deliver where he might actually tear himself in half but he's willing to do it and it works."
Paul Rudd next reprised his role as Ant-Man in *Ant-Man and the Wasp*. In April 2017, Peyton Reed confirmed that Scott Lang / Ant-Man would also feature his Giant-Man moniker, first introduced in *Captain America: Civil War*, with a new tech-suit. Following the events at the end of *Captain America: Civil War*, where Scott escaped from the Raft prison, Reed noted that Scott was "just a bigger fugitive now." In the film, Scott is under house arrest, monitored by agent Jimmy Woo. He is released by Hope van Dyne / Wasp, with whom he has a developing relationship, to assist Dr. Pym in creating a bridge to the quantum realm to locate Janet van Dyne. During this mission, he confronts the criminal Sonny Burch and the villain Ghost, who is aided by Bill Foster. Rudd expressed interest in portraying Scott as a regular person rather than someone "innately heroic or super," driven primarily by his desire to be a responsible parent. In the post-credits scene, while attempting to collect quantum particles from the quantum realm, Scott becomes trapped there after Janet, Hank, and Hope disappear due to Thanos' actions in *Avengers: Infinity War*.
Rudd reprised his role in *Avengers: Endgame*. In a key scene where attempts to send Scott through time drastically alter his age, Scott is portrayed by twins Bazlo and Loen LeClair as a baby, by Jackson A. Dunn at age 12, and by Lee Moore at age 93. This was Moore's final film before his death in August 2018. Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely explained that adding Scott to the narrative greatly facilitated the implementation of time travel into the film, stating that having "access to him in the second movie, and the fact that he was bringing a whole subset of technology that did have something to do with a different concept of time was like a birthday present." In November 2019, it was reported that *Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania* would again be helmed by Peyton Reed, with Paul Rudd expected to return as Ant-Man/Scott Lang.
5. In other media
Scott Lang / Ant-Man has appeared in various media outside of the films.
He is featured in the theme park attraction Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle! at Hong Kong Disneyland, where Paul Rudd reprises his role. Additionally, Scott Lang appears in the preshow of Avengers Assemble: Flight Force at Walt Disney Studios Park.
6. Reception
The character of Scott Lang and the films he appears in have received generally positive critical and audience reception.
For the 2015 film *Ant-Man*, the consensus from the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes noted, "Led by a charming performance from Paul Rudd, *Ant-Man* offers Marvel thrills on an appropriately smaller scale - albeit not as smoothly as its most successful predecessors." Todd McCarthy of *The Hollywood Reporter* remarked that while "the story dynamics are fundamentally silly and the family stuff, with its parallel father-daughter melodrama, is elemental button-pushing," a "good cast led by a winning Paul Rudd puts the nonsense over in reasonably disarming fashion."
Regarding *Ant-Man and the Wasp*, the critical consensus on Rotten Tomatoes described it as "A lighter, brighter superhero film powered by the effortless charisma of Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly, *Ant-Man and The Wasp* offers a much-needed MCU palate cleanser." Simon Abrams of RogerEbert.com felt that the film successfully managed its numerous subplots while providing Scott Lang with decent character development. Peter Travers, writing for *Rolling Stone*, awarded the film 3 out of 4 stars and praised the performances of Paul Rudd and Lilly. Similarly, Manohla Dargis at *The New York Times* commended Rudd's performance and felt Lilly found "her groove" in the film. Stephanie Zachareck, writing for *Time*, found the film to have reasonably fun action and standout moments between Rudd and Abby Ryder Fortson as Cassie, but felt the emphasis on Lilly as a superior hero to Rudd was "just checking off boxes in the name of gender equality."
Richard Roeper of the *Chicago Sun-Times* also praised the cast, particularly Rudd and Fortson. Ann Hornaday of *The Washington Post* criticized the film's plot as "instantly forgettable" but still found the movie enjoyable, specifically commending Rudd, the action, and the visual effects.
7. Accolades
Paul Rudd has received several awards and nominations for his portrayal of Scott Lang in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films.
| Year | Film | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Ant-Man | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Summer Movie Star: Male | Nominated |
| 2016 | Critics' Choice Awards | Best Actor in an Action Movie | Nominated | |
| Saturn Awards | Best Actor | Nominated | ||
| MTV Movie Awards | Best Hero | Nominated | ||
| 2019 | Ant-Man and the Wasp | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Action Movie Actor | Nominated |
| Avengers: Endgame | ||||
| 2023 | Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania | MTV Movie & TV Awards | Best Hero | Nominated |