| Scott Lang Ant-Man | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Textless cover ofAnt-Man #5 (November 2015). Art byMark Brooks. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | As Scott Lang: The Avengers #181 (March 1979) As Ant-Man: Marvel Premiere #47 (April 1979) |
| Created by | David Michelinie Bob Layton John Byrne |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Scott Edward Harris Lang |
| Species | Human |
| Team affiliations | Avengers Defenders Fantastic Four Future Foundation Guardians of the Galaxy Heroes for Hire Stark Industries Mighty Avengers New Avengers |
| Partnerships | Hank Pym Wasp Stinger Nadia Van Dyne |
| Notable aliases | Ant-Man |
| Abilities |
|
Ant-Man (Scott Edward Harris Lang) is a fictional character appearing inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics. Created byDavid Michelinie,Bob Layton andJohn Byrne, Scott Lang first appeared inThe Avengers #181 (March 1979) and inMarvel Premiere #47 (April 1979) as the second superhero character to use theAnt-Man name in theMarvel Universe. He is a reformed thief and an electronics expert. He was a member of theAvengers, theFantastic Four and theGuardians of the Galaxy, the main character in the comic-book seriesFF and, in 2015, he became the title character in the seriesAnt-Man.
Scott Lang is an ex-convict and electronics expert hired byStark International, which enables him to steal the Ant-Man suit fromHank Pym, who had long since given up the name, to help his sick daughter. When Pym finds out, he gives the suit to Lang, allowing him to become the second Ant-Man. As Ant-Man, he serves as an Avenger for years, until he is killed during theAvengers Disassembled storyline. Years later, he is resurrected in theAvengers: The Children's Crusade mini-series. Following his resurrection, Lang heads theFuture Foundation and founds his own company, theAnt-Man Security Solutions.
Paul Rudd playsScott Lang in theMarvel Cinematic Universe filmsAnt-Man (2015),Captain America: Civil War (2016),Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018),Avengers: Endgame (2019), andAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), the web seriesWHIH Newsfront (2015), and the animated seriesWhat If...? (2021). Additionally,Crispin Freeman,Josh Keaton, andGrant George have voiced Lang in animation.
Created byDavid Michelinie,Bob Layton andJohn Byrne,[1] Scott Lang first appeared inThe Avengers #181 (cover-dated March 1979) and as the second Ant-Man inMarvel Premiere #47 (April 1979).[2][3] Michelinie had long been an enthusiast of shrinking heroes, and saw Hank Pym's return to theYellowjacket guise as an opportunity to take over the discarded Ant-Man identity.[4] He explained how he came up with the character:
I wanted something completely different, in both origin and motivation, from Pym. So I came up with the idea of a reformed criminal - not an unjustly accused innocent, which would have been the expected angle. And I figured that, as a burglar, he probably enjoyed the adrenaline rush of his previous 'job,' so the excitement of heroic adventure could fill that need in him, but legally.[4]
Though Ant-Man's two-issue tryout inMarvel Premiere failed to garner the character his own series, the dynamic of a single father and reformed criminal in the superhero role struck a chord with readers and led to Ant-Man enjoying modest popularity and frequent appearances in Marvel Comics thereafter.[4]
Ant-Man appeared prominently in the 2012'sFF series byMatt Fraction andMike Allred.[5]
An ongoing series focusing on Lang, titled simplyAnt-Man written byNick Spencer and drawn byRamon Rosanas, began in January 2015.[6] After Marvel's Secret Wars event, the series continued with the titleAstonishing Ant-Man.
Scott Lang was born inCoral Gables, Florida.[7] A movie fanatic, he turned to burglary when his occupation as an electrical engineer failed to provide him with enough excitement in life.[8] (This was laterretconned with the statement that he did so because he could not support his family.[1]) Apprehended, Lang served his prison sentence and was paroled after four years for good behavior. In prison, he furthered his study of electronics and was soon hired byStark International to work in its design department. Under Tony Stark's direction, he helped install a new security system inAvengers Mansion.[9]
When his daughterCassie became seriously ill, Scott Lang sought out Dr. Erica Sondheim, the only person capable of helping her. However, at the very moment he attempted to contact her, Sondheim was forcibly taken away toCross Technological Enterprises, and to get her out, he decided to return to burglary as a final resort.[10] He broke intoHank Pym's home and stole the Ant-Man suit and shrinking gas canisters.[11] Garbed as Ant-Man, Lang broke into Cross Enterprises and discovered that Sondheim was being held prisoner byDarren Cross. He rescued the doctor from Cross' clutches and was relieved when Sondheim was able to save his beloved Cassie's life. Upon being confronted by Pym (asYellowjacket), Lang intended to return the Ant-Man suit to Pym and turn himself in for its theft, but Pym, aware of the use to which Lang had put the stolen goods, offered to let him keep them, provided he only use them to uphold the law.[12]
Shortly after, Scott Lang donned the Ant-Man costume on various occasions, primarily to assistIron Man and theAvengers. Scott came to the rescue when Iron Man was trapped in his armor in the aftermath of a system overload.[13] He also helped Yellowjacket (Hank Pym's alias at the time) attempt to rescue theWasp captured by Dr. Parnell Solomon, and alongside the Avengers he first battledTaskmaster.[14] He then battled Odd John's mutated insects, and encountered Biotron of theMicronauts.[15] AlongsideSpider-Man, he again battled Taskmaster, exploiting Taskmaster's belief that he was Pym by using his growth capsules on one of his ants as a surprise tactic.[16] As Lang, he attempted to stop theRaiders at a Dallas electronics engineers convention.[17] He then battled the malfunctioning GARD computer security system atStark International.[18] As Lang, he aided Iron Man andJim Rhodes againstMauler.[19] He then met theFantastic Four, and on their behalf first journeyed to a "micro-world", and joined theThing in battle against its denizens.[20]
Scott was instrumental in helping Iron Man discover who possessed copies of his technology during the "Armor Wars" storyline.[21]
He also aided the Avengers in infiltrating Taskmaster's henchmen-training facility, battling the Taskmaster alongsideHawkeye, and visited Henry Pym while he was in prison.[22] He encounteredRick Jones andAlpha Flight, and then battledDire Wraiths alongsideRom andStarshine.[23] Scott was serving in an Avengers back-up team created whenHelmut Zemo'sMasters of Evil took control of the Mansion and captured some of the current team; he even helped the Wasp defeatAbsorbing Man andTitania when they attacked a hospital in an attempt to kill a comatoseHercules.[24] He accidentally shrank Spider-Man and battled the Scarlet Beetle.[25] He also battledDragonfly.[26]
Lang was briefly hired by theFantastic Four to serve as their technical consultant when Reed Richards was missing and presumed dead.[27] It was during this period that Lang learned that Cassie had long since found out about his double life as a superhero.[28] Lang later returned to form a temporary Fantastic Four with theHuman Torch,She-Hulk, andNamorita when the other three were temporarily trapped in theNegative Zone.[29]
Lang played an important role in helpingMister Fantastic cure theHulk, who was suffering fromALS; using a cure devised by theLeader, Lang shrank down to microscopic size, entered Hulk's genes, and replaced the damaged genes causing the disease with healthy genes taken from the corpse of Bruce Banner's fatherBrian Banner, the energy surge released when Hulk returned to human form integrating the new genes into Hulk's system and curing him.[30]
After his ex-wife Peggy Rae gained custody of their daughter, Lang accepted an offer to join the Avengers officially.[31] His personality clashed immediately with fellow AvengerJack of Hearts. However, inThe Avengers vol. 3 #76, Jack helped save Cassie from a child-murderer, shortly before committing suicide by traveling into space with the murderer and exploding rather than return to the containment cells required to control his power.[32]
He also appeared in the seriesAlias byBrian Michael Bendis, where he dated the leading characterJessica Jones, a former costumed superhero named Jewel who left thatavocation to become a private investigator.[33]
He assists her in a matter withMattie Franklin, one of the many female heroes to take theSpider-Woman name. Assisting the duo isS.H.I.E.L.D. agentClay Quartermain.[34]Purple Man uses his powers to make it seem as if Scott had been consumed by ants.[35]
When Jack of Hearts reappears on the grounds of Avengers Mansion in a zombified state, Scott Lang rushes to Jack, only for Jack to blow himself up, destroying much of the mansion and seemingly killing Scott. This Jack may have been some type of "apparition" created by an insaneScarlet Witch rather than the actual Jack of Hearts, starting the crisis known asAvengers Disassembled.[36]
His daughter Cassie Lang subsequently takes the name Stature as a member of theYoung Avengers, having apparently taken enough Pym particles over the years to enable Cassie to automatically grow and shrink in size whenever she wants.[37]
His Ant-Man helmet falls intoAmadeus Cho's possession for a time with Cassie's blessing, choosing to focus on the insect mind-controlling abilities.[38]
During the events of the limited seriesAvengers: The Children's Crusade,Iron Lad takes the Young Avengers and an amnesiac Wanda Maximoff into the past, back to the day that the events ofAvengers Disassembled began. Here, despite Iron Lad's assurance that they could not interact, Scott Lang is hugged by his daughter, and to take him away from the zombified Jack of Hearts who is revealed to be the real Jack of Hearts under the control of an insane Scarlet Witch. When Jack explodes, the Scarlet Witch regains her memories and returns them to the present, including Scott (thus his death isretconned as having never actually happened, as he was merely taken from his time and brought forward).[39] Scott is proud that his daughter followed in his footsteps.[40] However, a subsequent battle ensues (regarding the fate of the Scarlet Witch) involving the Avengers, Young Avengers,X-Men,Magneto,X-Factor andDoctor Doom. In the course of the fight, Scott is seemingly killed by Doom, although he actually survives relatively unscathed; enraged, Cassie attacks but Doom kills her, much to Scott's grief.[41]
Afterwards, Scott joins the new Defenders team composed ofDoctor Strange,Silver Surfer,Namor,Red She-Hulk,Iron Fist, andBlack Cat.[42] Eventually, he became the secondFuture Foundation's leader replacing Reed Richards when theFantastic Four went on a time travel trip.[43] Still suffering from his daughter's death, he decided to aim all the Foundation's resources towards making Doctor Doom pay for his crime; in the meantime he engaged in a romantic relationship with Darla Deering, akaMs. Thing. It is to Darla that Scott confessed that he killed a fellow inmate while in prison.[44]
After a heated battle, Scott managed to exact his revenge on Doctor Doom by gradually overwhelming and defeating him, and by having him believe he had killedValeria Richards. He also determined the true meaning of Pym Particles, and how they operate on three distinct axes determining size, strength and durability.[45]
During the "AXIS" storyline, a now-heroic and repentant Doctor Doom used Scarlet Witch's powers to resurrect Cassandra Lang, seeking to atone for at least one of his crimes; she turned out alive and well on Scott's doorstep.[46]
Following this, Lang moved to Miami to start a new life as well as to spend more time with his daughter.[47] Scott later established Ant-Man Security Solutions. When he was attacked byGrizzly, mistaking him forEric O'Grady unaware of the latter's death, Scott had to clear up the misunderstanding. Afterwards, Scott offered Grizzly a job in the company.[48] When Cassie was kidnapped byCrossfire on behalf of Augustine Cross to use Cassie's Pym-particle irradiated heart could revive the very first villain Scott had fought, Scott was forced to turn to Grizzly and his fellow supervillainMachinesmith to infiltrate Cross' plant to save his daughter. With Machinesmith disabling all the security Scott was able to get into Cross Technologies and fight his way to Darren Cross, whom Dr. Sondheim was blackmailed into reviving using Cassie's heart.[49] Darren engaged in combat against Ant-Man while the hero tried to buy time for Sondheim to transplant another heart into Cassie. After Cross was forced to flee when the Pym Particles now in his body caused him to shrink down, Scott shrank down to microscopic size, and was guided by Sondheim to attack Cassie's white cells and allow her body accept the new heart's tissue. Even though the procedure was difficult, Scott was finally able to help Cassie survive the experience. When Peggy and Blake arrived, Sondheim told her that Cassie suffered an infraction and Scott took them to her. Although he saved his daughter, Scott decided to distance himself from her so that she could have a normal life.[50]
Some months ago, Ant-Man helped Giant-Man into rescuing a computer technician named Raz Malhotra from Egghead. Months later after the incident where Hank Pym and Ultron were fused together with Pym seemingly perishing as a result of the fusion, Scott received one of Pym's labs. Recalling his encounter with Raz, Scott sent Raz a present in the form of the Giant-Man suit.[51]
During the "Secret Wars" storyline, Ant-Man recovers an unnamed Asgardian artifact fromSlug which he won fromMary Morgan in a game of contract bridge. Ant-Man delivers the goods to Mary Morgan, where he learns that she is Miss Patriot. Mary revealed that Valhalla Villas is a retirement home for Golden Age heroes and villains where they live out their days in blissful remembrance. Mary then assembles the residents of Valhalla Villas likeGolden Girl, Doctor Fear,Thunderer, Leopard Girl,Human Top,Sun Girl,American Ace, Flash Foster, and Wax Master. Using the Asgardian artifact, Mary rejuvenated the Valhalla Villa residents as Miami sees the unexpected resurgence of characters from the Golden Age. Mary decides to remain elderly since the past was too much to bear the first and only time. Scott then visits his ex-wife Peggy Rae in an attempt to see his daughterCassie Lang. Peggy puts Scott in his place due to him making no effort to visit her since she was in the hospital. Peggy also tells Scott that Cassandra is at a school excursion to Atlanta. While drinking at a nightclub, Ant-Man encountersJanice Lincoln and tries to take her down, only to get blasted. Janice states to Ant-Man that he should party like there is no tomorrow since it is the last night on Earth. Ant-Man takes in Janice's suggestions as they both hit the dance floor. He wakes up the next morning with Janice in his bed as the final parts of the Incursion occur.[52]
As part of the "All-New, All-Different Marvel," Ant-Man becomes a target of Whirlwind whenPower Broker offers a demonstration of the Hench App to Darren Cross. When Cross was unable to pay $12,000,000.00 to Power Broker, Whirlwind received orders to not attack Ant-Man.[53] Ant-Man later helped Darla Deering when she was attacked by the secondMagician (the son of the original Magician) when he was hired by a publicist named Marlena Howard through the Hench App to pretend to have a grudge against her.[54]
Scott Lang later reunited with Raz Malhotra and took him to confront Power Broker at his public promotion of the Hench App 2.0. They ended up coming into conflict with a femaleBlacklash who Power Broker hired to guard the event. Due to Raz's inexperience in crimefighting, Blacklash got away. Following the incident, Scott Lang gave Raz an offer come with him to Florida to be trained while looking over Hank Pym's lab there. Raz accepted the offer.[55]
Scott later recruited Hijacker, Whirlwind, Beetle, Voice, and Magician to his Ant-Man Security Solutions.[56] As a team, they fought Darren Cross, Crossfire and Augustine Cross to save Stinger, aka Cassie Lang.[57] After that battle, the NYPD arrested Scott for his crimes. After a trial, he was released.[58]
During the "Secret Empire" storyline, Ant-Man joins the resistance group againstHydra after they takeover the U.S. After seeing footage fromRick Jones, explaining Steve Rogers' conversion into Hydra's supreme leader, Scott is among the heroes who join Hawkeye in the search for theCosmic Cube fragments that were scattered around the world, so they could reform the Cube and restore Steve back to normal.[59] After he smuggles Cassie out of the country, he offersSam Wilson to join the resistance but Sam turns it down. Ant-Man then meets him at a bar, with a small group of heroes led by Hawkeye.[60] Hawkeye and the Tony Stark A.I. manage to convince Sam to smuggle them out of the country so they can find the Cosmic Cube fragments.[61] It is eventually revealed that Hydra found and captured Cassie, forcing Scott to become a double agent to save her life. He confesses his treachery just as Hydra's forces arrive and destroy the resistance's hideout.[62] During the final battle, Scott shrinksBucky Barnes down so that he can enter the Cosmic Cube and reawakenKobik. This ultimately allows Kobik to bring back the original Steve Rogers, who defeats his Hydra doppelganger.[63]
With his reputation tarnished due to his betrayal, Scott joins theGuardians of the Galaxy to get away from Earth for a while.[64] During a later attempt to coordinate a return to Earth for Cassie's birthday withNadia van Dyne's aid, things go quickly awry, and the two of them experience a series of bizarre adventures in the microverse before returning home. However, in the process the two of them becamequantum-entangled with each other.[65]
Trying to pick up the pieces of his lost life on Earth, Scott takes up residence in an ant-hill in Florida and begins offering his service for pay.[66] On a mission, he ends up joining forces withSwarm against a new enemy called Macrothrax.[67]
Using a gaseous form of "Pym particles" kept in a compartment in his belt,[12] Ant-Man initially had the power to shrink himself (and other people and objects along with himself) to the size of an ant and return to normal. Over time, he has acquired the ability to change size at will.[volume & issue needed] He can also shrink to sub-microscopic size, and thereby enter the countless "subatomic universes".[20] He retains his normal strength in ant size.
Lang also discovered the true secret of Pym Particle technology, using it along an axis of three enhancement and reduction vectors. Enabling access of phy. augmentation without growing or shrinking to various sizes.[68] Thecybernetic Ant-Man helmet allows rudimentarytelepathic communication with insects, and is equipped with sound amplification equipment allowing normal-sized humans to hear its wearer. The helmet also has a retractable plexiglass face shield and a limited air supply.
Lang has advanced training and expertise in electronics, having earned an electronics technician certificate, plus additional advanced electronics training he received while in prison. At times, Lang even made his own modifications to the Ant-Man equipment, such as installing the Pym gas dispenser in his helmet rather than leaving it on his belt,[13] or mounting an electric disruptor into his helmet for offensive purposes.[13]
Scott Banner / Little Monster, a fusion of Ant-Man and theHulk created by theInfinity Gems, appears inInfinity Wars. He possesses similar abilities to the Hulk, but decreases in size as he grows in power.[69][70][71][72]
Two alternate universe variants of Scott Lang appear inMC2. The first, from Earth-982, is a retired superhero and mentor to his successor, Cassie Lang.[73] The second isPincer, a supervillain and member of the Thunder Guard from Earth-9907.[74]
An alternate universe variant of Scott Lang from Earth-1610 appears in theUltimate Marvel Universe. This version is a member of the NewUltimates and the secondGiant-Man.[75][76] Additionally, a separate character based on him,David Scotty, appears as a reserve member of the Ultimates before being transformed into avampire and killed by fellow Giant-Man Peter.[77][78]
In "What If Iron Man Lost theArmor Wars", Lang is captured while spying onJustin Hammer, and taken prisoner along with Cassie. When Hammer is later assassinated and his knowledge over the Iron Man armor claimed byA.I.M., Scott and Cassie are taken hostage by them as well, but are eventually freed by Stark using theFirepower armor.[79]
Paul Rudd portrays Scott Lang / Ant-Man in the live-actionMarvel Cinematic Universe filmsAnt-Man,Captain America: Civil War,Ant-Man and the Wasp,Avengers: Endgame, andAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.[83] Additionally, Rudd voices alternate timeline variants of Lang in theDisney+ animated seriesWhat If...?.[84][85]
The MCU incarnation of Scott Lang / Ant-Man appears in theAnt-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle! attraction, with Paul Rudd reprising his role from the films.[95]
| Title | Material collected | Published date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ant-Man: Scott Lang | Marvel Premiere #47-48,Iron Man #131-133, 151,Avengers #195-196, 223,Marvel Team-Up #103,Marvel Two-In-One #87, material fromAvengers #181,Iron Man #125 | June 2015 | 978-0785192664 |
| Ant-Man Vol. 1: Second-Chance Man | Ant-Man (vol. 1) #1-5 | June 2015 | 978-0785193876 |
| The Astonishing Ant-Man Vol. 1: Everybody Loves Team-Ups | The Astonishing Ant-Man #1-4,Ant-Man: Last Days #1,Ant-Man Annual #1 | May 2016 | 978-0785199489 |
| The Astonishing Ant-Man Vol. 2: Small-Time Criminal | The Astonishing Ant-Man #5-9 | October 2016 | 978-0785199496 |
| The Astonishing Ant-Man Vol. 3: The Trial of Ant-Man | The Astonishing Ant-Man #10-13,Guardians Team-Up #7 | April 2017 | 978-0785199526 |
| The Astonishing Ant-Man: The Complete Collection | Ant-Man (vol. 1) #1-5,Annual #1,Ant-Man: Last Days #1,The Astonishing Ant-Man #1-13 | June 2018 | 978-1302911324 |
| Ant-Man and the Wasp | Ant-Man and the Wasp #1-5 | November 2018 | 978-0785194620 |
| Avengers Assemble: Living Legends | Ant-Man and the Wasp: Living Legends #1 andThor: Where Walk the Frost Giants #1,Black Panther: The Sound and the Fury #1,Avengers: Shards of Infinity #1,Captain Marvel: Braver & Mightier #1 | April 2019 | 978-1302916381 |
| Ant-Man: World Hive | Ant-Man (vol. 2) #1-5 | September 2020 | 978-1302922580 |
| Ant-Man: Ant-Niversary | Ant-Man (vol. 3) #1-4 and material fromTales To Astonish #37, 43 | January 2023 | 978-1302945428 |
| Ant-Man: The Saga Of Scott Lang | Ant-Man and the Wasp: Living Legends,Ant-Man and the Was #1-5,Giant-Man #1-3,Ant-Man (vol. 2) #1-5,Guardians Team-Up #7 | January 2023 | 978-1302950651 |
| Members |
| ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supporting |
| ||||||||
| Enemies |
| ||||||||
| Locations | |||||||||
| Publications |
| ||||||||
| Storylines | |||||||||
| Related articles | |||||||||
Authority control databases: National |
|---|
