Edgar Wright's 'Ant-Man' Homework Hints At Multiple Ant-Men

Last month, we finally learned after months of rumor and speculation that Ant-Man would be played by none other than Paul Rudd in Edgar Wright's movie. What we did not find out was whom Rudd would actually be playing. There are multiple Ant-Men in the Marvel Comics canon, and so far there's been no official confirmation about which version of the character we're getting.

But perhaps Marvel's being coy because we're not getting an Ant-Man, but multiple Ant-Men. In a cryptic blog post (is there any other kind, when it comes to directors entrusted with big geeky properties?) Wright revealed a tiny detail about the research he's doing for the film, and it suggests that we might get to meet Scott Lang and Hank Pym in the new movie. Hit the jump to see why.

The photo doesn't look like much, but Coming Soon reports that it is a still from the animated series Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Specifically, the episode "To Steal an Ant-Man," which is based on Marvel Premiere #47. The issue has Scott Lang stealing Hank Pym's Ant-Man suit to commit a crime, but he ultimately comes back around to the side of good and becomes the new Ant-Man with Pym's blessing.

The clue lends credence to the speculation, which has been swirling for a while now, that Ant-Man would feature both characters. Adding further credence to the theory is the fact that Wright himself mentioned way back when that he wanted to do a film about both, and that Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige has described Ant-Man as a "heist film."

The popular assumption has been that Pym would be the Ant-Man we saw in the film. He's the original Ant-Man and probably the most famous one, and Wright confirmed this summer that Pym would be in the film. But the new hint doesn't contradict that, exactly. It just indicates that Pym might not be the only Ant-Man in the movie.

But that's assuming Wright is indeed basing his film on this story arc, and that he's doing so faithfully. Those are pretty big ifs considering how often superhero films directors take liberties with the source material. We'll know for certain when Ant-Man hits July 31, 2015.