Who are the best Ant-Man characters? Along with Doctor Strange, Ant-Man has quickly (and surprisingly) transitioned into one of the most important, leading characters within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Scott Lang’s corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe introduced us to a selection of some of the best MCU characters and villains, including Kang the Conqueror, MODOK, and Ghost.
While there’s plenty of hype for these – and what they might end up meaning for Marvel’s Phase 5 – the characters previously introduced within the Ant-Man movies have often been overlooked. Not any more, because we have a list of the best Ant-Man characters.
Who are the best Ant-Man characters?
- Darren Cross/MODOK
- Cassie Lang
- Kang the Conqueror
- Hope van Dyne/The Wasp
- Luis
- Ava Starr/Ghost
- Jimmy Woo
- Hank Pym
- Janet van Dyne
- Scott Lang/Ant-Man
10. Darren Cross/MODOK
Darren Cross only wanted one thing. To earn a boatload of money selling dangerous weapons to HYDRA, is that too much to ask? Unfortunately, it didn’t work out for this sinister shrinking salesman, and he was condemned to eternity in the Quantum Realm, or at least he was, until Kang found him and turned the mutated Cross into MODOK.
Now, a Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing, Darren managed to find a modicum of redemption during the events of Quantumania when he rebelled against his time-traveling master. It’s s surprisingly satisfying character arc for a villain we presumed we’d never see again and earned Darren a place on this list.
9. Cassie Lang
A pint-sized powerhouse who’s gone into the family business of shrinking down to kick bad guy butt, Cassie Lang’s been awesome since the first Ant-Man movie, and if Quantumania’s anything to go by future Marvel villains, best watch out if Cassie’s about.
In all seriousness, though, Cassie’s gone from a young kid terrified of Cross to a capable hero of her own, and that’s more than a little impressive. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for her, but surely, someone of her stature deserves a place on the Young Avengers team if they ever form one.
8. Kang the Conqueror
Kang’s only had one major appearance so far, but what an impression he made. This intimidating variant ruled the Quantum Realm with an iron fist and apparently killed Avengers for fun. Kang was easily one of the main recipients of praise in our Ant-Man 3 review, which should tell you all you need to know about his impact.
From what little we’ve seen, he’s terrifying and intelligent in equal measure and will come in as a genuine challenger to Thanos’ crown as the franchise’s best movie villain. We can’t wait to get to know him better.
7. Hope van Dyne/The Wasp
Hope van Dyne and Scott have been taking on an increasingly equal dynamic throughout the Ant-Man movies and other appearances, and her more serious (and mature) approach makes for a nice contrast to Scott’s general light-heartedness.
The pair’s romance is rather sterile and could do with a bit more, well, life, but Hope still takes on an important (and all too rare) role of a female superhero within the MCU. Before her, it was really just Black Widow – who is now dead.
Hopefully, she continues to wave that flag as the franchise makes steps towards opening itself more in Marvel’s Phase 5 and beyond.
6. Luis
Admittedly, Luis is nothing more than comic relief, but he’s comic relief that works. While the MCU does occasionally struggle to land its jokes, Luis is often genuinely quite funny.
He feels like a hangover from when Edgar Wright was attached to Ant-Man, which means that the further away we get from the first Ant-Man movie, the less he’s in the action movies. In fact, Luis was missing entirely from the Ant-Man cast for the threequel, which is a shame.
5. Ava Starr/Ghost
Ghost might be one of the most underrated Marvel villains. She has unique abilities, which makes her more interesting to deal with than your standard punchy-punchy villain.
Ghost is set to make her return in the Thunderbolts movie, which would will see her join forces with similarly morally ambiguous characters in the MCU’s version of the Suicide Squad (Yelena, Bucky Barnes, Taskmaster, etc.).
4. Jimmy Woo
Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo, a former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent now in the FBI, became an unexpected fan favorite character upon his introduction in Ant-Man 2, where he monitors Lang while he’s on house arrest.
He later showed up again in the Marvel series WandaVision and also had a tiny role in Ant-Man 3.
3. Hank Pym
It’s fair to say that Hank Pym has a more illustrious reputation in the Marvel comics than he does within the MCU, where Michael Douglas plays him. However, in both, he’s the original Ant-Man and the namesake of the Pym Particles (which essentially saved the universe from Thanos as well as allowing a person to go micro).
What small screen time he does get, Pym acts as a mentor to Scott Lang, who takes on the mantle as the new owner of the Ant-Man suit.
2. Janet van Dyne
Janet van Dyne, much like Hank Pym, is the previous and original Wasp, as well as being a mother to Hope. Played by Batman movie star Michelle Pfeiffer, Janet van Dyne has a lot more charisma than Pym. She also acts as a mentor to both Hope and Scott and isn’t too afraid to get her own hands dirty when necessary, as we saw in Ant-Man 3.
1. Scott Lang/Ant-Man
Scott Lang wouldn’t be as great as he is without Paul Rudd. Rudd has excellent comic timing, charisma, and an ability to make things serious when they need to be, and that means that there are only a few actors who feel quite so perfect for the MCU as the Ant-Man actor.
Lang himself is smart and kind, with an edge of steeliness from his time as a petty criminal. He’s one of the most unlikely heroes, which ensures that he stands out, and he’s also become a leading Avenger ever since the events of Avengers Endgame.
That’s it on the best Ant-Man characters. For more on the MCU, check out our guides to The Marvels release date, the Deadpool 3 release date, and the Avengers 5 release date. Or, broaden your horizons with our picks for the best movies of all time.
If you’re desperate to know even more about Scott Lang’s latest adventure, we’ve got articles explaining the Ant-Man 3 ending, who plays MODOK, how to watch Ant-Man 3, and even a list of everyone who dies in Ant-Man 3. If that’s not enough, we also have a guide to the Ant-Man 4 release date.