Michael Douglas earns new generation of fans from Ant-Man movies
Michael Douglas says Hank Pym role has earned him a new generation of fans
At 73, Hollywood icon Michael Douglas is earning a new generation of fans, thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
In superhero blockbuster Ant-Man And The Wasp, the sequel to 2015's Ant-Man which is showing here, the US actor dives deeper into his character - brilliant physicist and original Ant-Man Hank Pym. Pym and daughter Hope van Dyne, aka the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), go in search of his wife Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) in the quantum realm with the help of Scott Lang aka Ant-Man (Paul Rudd).
What is it like being part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe now?
It's cool. First off, I've got this whole new generation of fans under 15 years old, all of whom could never see my movies before, and they're saying, "Hey, Hank Pym!"
It flatters you after doing this for 50 years to see this new group.
And there's a fun factor to it. My career has been contemporary films - comedies, dramas and all that.
So to get into this other world, the quantum realm where anything goes, is a trip.
It has a family feeling about it, in terms of the Marvel family, and just some really good actors to work with.
What made you come back to Ant-Man?
It's a nice part of my legacy to have a show like this that I can come in and out of. Most of my career, I'm always carrying the movie - I'm in every single scene. Now I can leave that up to Paul and Evangeline.
How did the news of Pfeiffer playing your wife hit you?
It was just fabulous. In the first movie, there is a flashback with me that depicts me as 30 years younger. It is really cool. It would be great in this to have the chance to act with Michelle Pfeiffer as we looked 30 years ago. Who wouldn't like that?
What can you tell us about Hank's lab in San Francisco?
It looks like a five or six-storey factory building, kind of nondescript. But inside, he's doing tremendous research, exploring entering the quantum realm.
He still has the ability to make things small, even shrinking down a six-storey building.
We have one of the greatest sets that I've ever seen. We will make you believe that I can reduce it to the size of a travel suitcase and take it wherever I want.
And how about Hank's relationship with Hope and working with Lilly?
At the end of the first movie, Hank felt that Hope was old enough to show her Janet's Wasp outfit, as she was the original Wasp.
So that was an introduction to Hope beginning her career of Hank being her mentor in the Ant-Man adventures. They have mutual respect for each other now.
It's a real joy to watch Evangeline come into her own in a superhero film in which she plays a title character. I get a kick out of watching her joy and excitement, and her incredible hard work and overall ability. She's a wonderful actress and has great ability at handling stunts. I'm proud of her.
What can audiences expect from the sequel?
Ant-Man And The Wasp probably has a little more humour than some of the other Marvel pictures. And, of course, this whole concept of getting small just has innumerable possibilities. In Marvel's infinite wisdom, they've found a whole bunch of ways to play this out. It has some great action sequences and some good laughs. I even think I'm going to try to bring a couple of tears here and there.
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