Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is set to introduce the Marvel Cinematic Universe to Kang the Conqueror, a job that director Peyton Reed said the team behind the film was glad to take on.

Speaking to Nerdbunker in a recent interview, Reed said that the crew behind the film wanted the responsibility to introduce Kang into the MCU, and were excited about the possibilities of getting to “create him” and “figure out who he is in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”

“We wanted the responsibility,” Reed said. “We wanted to put Ant-Man and the Wasp against one of the big great villains in the Marvel Comics universe. I loved Kang as a kid, and to get to create him, and figure out who he is in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, that’s always a fun thing, taking these characters that people have a relationship with in the comics and figuring out sort of what that is in the movie universe. Because they are two very different things.”

Alongside Kang, the upcoming sequel will also introduce MCU newcomer Kathryn Newton (The Society, Freaky) as she now takes over the role of Cassie Lang, a character previously portrayed by Abby Ryder Fortson in the first Ant-Man films and Emma Fuhrmann in Endgame. 

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania is once again being directed by Peyton Reed from a screenplay written by Jeff Loveness. The action-comedy superhero sequel will release on February 17, 2023.