Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania actor Kathryn Newton has provided the scoop on the fun she was able to have on set with her co-stars including onscreen dad Paul Rudd, categorising the picture as a ‘father-daughter road trip movie’.
The 26-year-old actress plays Cassie Lang, a newbie to the MCU, after Ant-Man/Scott Lang (Rudd) became caught in the Quantum Realm during the Blip and discovered that five years had gone in the span of minutes he was there.
This time, hero Scott is trapped in the Quantum Realm (under different circumstances) with his family, which includes Cassie, Hope Van Dyne/Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), and her parents, Dr Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Pym (Michelle Pfeiffer).
Obviously, crazy adventures happen, and Quantumania has the distinction of formally kicking off Phase Five of the MCU, as well as introducing fans to Marvel’s next nemesis – Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors).
Despite the extravagant special effects, otherworld visuals, and blockbuster budget, Newton and the actors of Ant-Man have emphasised that the film is mostly about family.
Newton revealed how they formed their working connection, praising her co-star Rudd as ‘an fantastic performer’ and (reassuringly) ‘just a wonderful guy’.

Speaking to Metro.co.uk, she revealed: ‘Peyton Reed, our director, creates an environment of play. So, we always did the scene, but we also had a lot of fun and improvised – and not necessarily to change the script, but it’s because it creates a chemistry and an energy that the audience can really feel. I see that, and I think that’s why Peyton encouraged that.
‘I talked to him about it – I was like, “Oh, that’s why you did that. It wasn’t because you liked my jokes, because they weren’t very good, it was because you wanted to catch pieces of me just being me.” And it works in the movie.’
‘There’s so much going on that it’s very crucial to remember – and Peyton did a really amazing job of making sure we always kept anchored in – the core of the tale, which is between a father and his daughter connecting,’ said the Pokémon Detective Pikachu actor.
‘And I hope that audiences feel that because Ant-Man movies are always about family at the end of the day, it’s like a father-daughter road trip to the Quantum Realm!’
A road adventure featuring lethal danger, the prospect of extinction of your world, a pink talking blob obsessed with holes – and, of course, stars Pfeiffer and Douglas.
Despite having worked on several high-profile projects in the past, Newton was not at all casual about her MCU debut as a significant character, which she called as her “top, top objective” as a performer.
‘I mean, I did Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Ladybird [and] Big Little Lies in the same year, and then I did Pokémon Detective Pikachu as well. I was like, “That’s it, I’m done. I’ve done it all. I don’t have any other aspects that I think I need to explore. I should quit.” I’m just kidding – I never wanted to quit.’
‘But the only next thing is Marvel. I don’t know if I can do it; I don’t know if I’ll ever get it. It’s kind of hard to set a goal for yourself like that with that many expectations, but I really, really wanted it,’ she emphasised.
The actress also claimed that the process did not happen overnight, and she could have ended up in a different Marvel production instead.
‘I didn’t take it for granted that I got the opportunity, and it’s not like it happened overnight. I was in the mix on Marvel for like three years on something… But I had to be patient, and I also had to be ready.
‘I think that’s the truth – they have a method. They liked me so they had me in mind, but they waited for the right moment to pick something for me, and Cassie Lang is the perfect role for me – because she’s just like me. She’s not perfect, she’s totally a dork.

‘But my favourite thing about her is she cares so much about other people. I care a lot about other people too, but she and I have this really big thing in common where we’re super impatient. Maybe I thought I was ready to do a Marvel movie three years ago, but maybe I wasn’t?’
Discussing Cassie further, she added: ‘I think that’s kind of how she is, she wants to be a superhero. But she’s not really ready – she doesn’t actually know how to jump and tap, things like that. She’s got to figure it out. She gives it a good go, and I think I gave it a good go because I promise you every day I didn’t give in and didn’t hold back. And that’s all you really need, right? I tried.’
And how did it feel to go onto the set of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Qantumania on the first day of filming and meet the fantastic cast and crew? Understandably intimidating.

‘I just tried to be invisible, and not talk or look at anyone, and I didn’t have to be like that at all. I just was nervous, I think. I wasn’t nervous when I got the job. I didn’t believe it, so it didn’t really hit me, but as soon as I stepped on set and I saw Michelle Pfeiffer and Jonathan Majors, Michael Douglas, and Evangeline Lilly and Paul Rudd, I was like, “Oh, my God, what am I doing here?”’
However, her confidence soared with how she was treated by her fellow actors.
‘I didn’t need to be like that at all because they’re so not like that. They’re having fun and talking – and not even giving me advice, just inviting me into the conversation, and through that, they believed in me, I felt the trust, and I was able to try things and have fun and bring my best. Which is what they wanted; they want someone to do a great job.’
‘There’s no room to be intimidated, you don’t have time to be scared, because you need to make a great movie. And that’s what everyone wanted to do.’
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is in cinemas now.