Edgar Wright leaves Ant-Man due to creative differences

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The Cornetto trilogy helmer won’t direct the Marvel movie

Edgar Wright will no longer direct Marvel’s Ant-Man .

The really rather shocking news comes from Variety , referring to a joint statement from Marvel and Wright that claims the amicable decision stems from ‘differences in their vision of the film.’

Apparently the film’s proposed summer 2015 release date will not change, with a new (as yet unannounced director) being primed to take over.

What makes the news so WTF-shocking is that Wright has been attached to the project for some eight years, starting work on the screenplay with Joe Cornish back in 2006. He has also shot test footage for the film, which played to enthusiastic crowds at Comic-Con.

It’s hard not to feel a little disappointed, as the prospect of such a witty, inventive and idiosyncratic auteur tackling a tentpole superhero blockbuster had us giddily excited. Here’s hoping that Wright’s fingerprints remain on the project to some extent, thanks to his script contributions.

Wright has previously directed the ‘Three Flavours Cornetto’ trilogy - Shaun Of The Dead , Hot Fuzz , The World’s End - as well as comic-book adap Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World .

Ant-Man - starring Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly and Michael Douglas - is still set to open on 17 July 2015 in the US and the UK. It will be the first film in Phase 3 of Marvel's Cinematic Universe.

Matt Maytum
Matt Maytum
Former Editor of Total Film magazine

Matt Maytum is the former Editor of Total Film magazine. Over the past decade, Matt has worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at GamesRadar+. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.