It has a cast that includes Paul Rudd and Michael Douglas, but Ant-Man apparently still doesn't have a screenplay that Marvel Studios are happy with. Following the departure of Edgar Wright over creative differences, and a subsequent pass by Adam McKay, the latest draft has been taken on by the writing team of Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari.
The pair landed themselves on the buzzy Black List for 2010, right after graduating from NYU, with the screenplay for their still un-produced drama Die In A Gunfight. They've since had their horror pic Haunt (not to be confused with Vincenzo Natali's Haunter) brought to the screen with Harrison Gilbertson in the lead, and they've also been at work on Jonathan Levine's Legend and the developing **Sabrina The Teenage Witch **reboot.
Too many cooks, or necessary triage? Whatever's going on, Marvel and new director Peyton Reed are clearly finding Ant-Man a particularly tough nut to crack. Wright, of course, was perfectly confident that he'd cracked it. That story has yet to be told.
Marvel's official synopsis for the film, currently reads thusly: “Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, con-man Scott Lang (Rudd) must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym (Douglas), protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.”
Corey Stoll, Michael Peña, Evangeline Lilly and Patrick Wilson are also part of the Rudd/Douglas-headed cast, and the release date is still set for June 17 next year. They really are cutting it awfully fine...