Ant-Man and the Wasp
is the 20th story from Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and the first movie to hit cinemas after all those Avengers died in Infinity War. Because it followed Infinity War, Ant-Man and the Wasp brought us some answers to our questions. We now know precisely what Ant-Man was doing while Tony Stark and Co. were fighting Thanos. And we’ve got more confirmation that the majority of the fallen heroes will be resurrected in Avengers 4.
But we also have a significant question about the film’s villain. Who is the real bad guy? If you’ve seen the movie, you might be puzzled. Didn’t Ant-Man and the Wasp fight not one, but two villains? Yes, yes they did. But not the main one. If you haven’t seen the movie, proceed with caution, as spoilers lie ahead.
Sonny Burch (Walton Goggins) and Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) are the villains of the film, and they’re both defeated by the time the credits roll. Well, Ghost turns into more of a friend after it becomes clear that she was only motivated to act against the heroes out of fear that she might die.
That leaves Burch as the villain of the film, but he’s not exactly the kind of bad dude we’re used to seeing in Marvel stories. Burch is more of a wannabe villain, a sidekick, at best. He doesn’t have the skill, sophistication, or resources to mount up a real fight. Burch is an easy target, even though his antics were good enough that we got to see plenty of delightful action.
The real villain of Ant-Man 2 is the person who set things in motion for Burch. It’s the person who, in a world dominated by superheroes, isn’t afraid to challenge them. It’s a person who has the sophistication and resources to think outside the box. It’s the person who’s willing to pay Burch a billion dollars for Dr. Pym’s quantum realm inventions.
Let’s not forget that access to the quantum realm would allow someone to retrieve energy resources like the one harnessed by Janet, not to mention some control over space and time. The person who’s willing to get that technology is apparently aware of what it’s worth. What the movie doesn’t tell us is who this person is. But make no mistake, that’s the real villain of the show, someone we’ll probably see later down the road.
Who can it be? The usual suspects, including Hydra, AIM, and Justin Hammer, are on a short list. Dr. Doom is a more exciting possibility, says CBR. Norman Osborn (the Green Goblin) is another, reports Digital Spy, as Marvel asked Sony not to use the Spider-Man villain in its own movies.
We’ll probably find out more details about this mysterious character in upcoming Marvel movies, especially considering that he or she did not get any real screen time in this one, aside from Burch mentioning the existence of this mystery buyer.
