I love me some Paul Rudd. I mean, what’s not to love about Josh from Clueless and Mike from “Friends?” I grew up adoring Paul Rudd and following his career. I swoon every time I have an opportunity to interview Paul Rudd. This fall I had the chance to watch Paul Rudd in action on the set of Ant-Man and the Wasp at Pinewood Studios in Atlanta, GA.
The best part about this photo is that Paul is looking right at me, sweet. Thanks for the capture Louise! Photo by Momstart.
Last week in Los Angeles I attended the press junket for Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp and I could not have been happier to see Paul Rudd on the interview list again. I had so many questions after having screened the full movie! Read on to see what he had to tell us and come back after July 6th for some spoilers that we can’t release until then!
Our group always claps when our interviewee walks in. We’re excited to see them. And their reactions are priceless. Paul’s reaction was no different. He was elated and surprised.
Photo by Momstart.
“Gosh, I haven’t even started. Oh my god I’m not going to joke, I was like, my reaction is just to immediately join in,” Paul said laughing. “My heart is racing. Yeah, they asked me, ‘Do you want coffee?’ I don’t need coffee. Right. How is it going? I like your shirt. Gee, so many different hair colors.”
Marvel Studios ANT-MAN AND THE WASP. Ant-Man/Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) . Photo: Ben Rothstein. ©Marvel Studios 2018
On what it’s like seeing the finished product
Paul Rudd was really excited to share with us his enthusiasm for the finished product of the movie, which was really thrilling to hear about since some of us had recently interviewed him while they were still filming. “It’s always a strange thing when it’s coming out. You put so much work for so long into something,” Paul explained. “It’s exciting when you like the finished product because you can talk about it, and you don’t have to manufacture enthusiasm. But the filming of it—the experience of it—has been nothing but fun. Hard work, but really enjoyable.”
Marvel Studios ANT-MAN AND THE WASP
L to R: Ant-Man/Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and Cassie Lang (Abby Ryder Forston) BTS on set.
Photo: Ben Rothstein
©Marvel Studios 2018
On comedy and co-writing the script for Ant-Man and the Wasp
Paul said it wasn’t a challenge to bring in the comedic factor since he’s so familiar with the role at this point. Scott Lang has made an appearance now in two other films (Ant-Man and Captain America: Civil War). “In this one we kind of hit the ground running.”
“People know the characters and accept us in the roles,” Paul said. “And because of that, we were able to lean into comedy or lean into whatever it is we were doing a little bit more; we didn’t have to explain it, we just thought people will go along with this…the Russo Brothers really wanted to lean into the comedy of it.”
Marvel Studios ANT-MAN AND THE WASP. L to R: Cassie Lang (Abby Ryder Fortson) and Ant-Man/Scott Lang (Paul Rudd). Photo: Ben Rothstein. ©Marvel Studios 2018
The family theme
Paul Rudd expressed how they have their own space and tone within the MCU. “While we want it to work within the Universe and want it to be enjoyable for all ages, we’re dealing with parents and children. This is a theme that runs throughout this story. And a lot of kids want to see these movies and sometimes there are some scary things in them.”
Paul knows full well that the MCU has a lot of films that are a little too intense and violent for kids, so they wanted to make a movie that works and is enjoyable for all ages.
“We wanted it to be funny, but we also wanted it to be engaging and moving in some way. We wanted it to be visually stunning, even more than the first one. And we wanted the action and the effects to be bigger and better. So we were trying to do a lot.”
Marvel Studios ANT-MAN AND THE WASP
L to R: The Wasp/Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and Ant-Man/Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) BTS on set.
Photo: Ben Rothstein
©Marvel Studios 2018
Paul talked about how fabulous it is to co-star with Evangeline Lilly. He said she makes a great duo.
“Actually the female character, I think is the one who’s really better suited for the job, in all honesty. It’s a family business, and she’s born into it. I love the fact that it is an extended family, that my ex-wife and her new husband…we all get along really well. It takes a village.”
Paul said speaking to these themes in the movie is important and they put a lot of thought into it.
Abby Ryder Fortson, the girl who plays Cassie Lang, is very talented, and Paul concurs.
“She’s a really good actress and a good kid. And it was our second time working together; I think she trusts me, we get on really well. I love working with her, and I love doing those scenes with her. I like working with kids because you don’t really know what they’re going to do, and you just kind of go off of what they’re doing and if you can establish a relationship outside of the filmmaking, just hanging around set, it can be really fun to film scenes with kids.”
Paul said working with Abby was pretty easy and Cassie is a natural fit for Scott Lang’s character as a dad.
“My daughter is a little bit younger but not much. And those kinds of scenes are accessible to me because I’ve been in them, I know what that’s like. It’s one of my favorite things because I share that with my own daughter. And she loves it. At first, when she was very young, I used to think, ‘Is it going to be weird?’ When my daughter is old enough and she sees this movie, that she’s going to see me playing dad to a little girl. And instead, it’s the opposite. She really loves it, because I tell her, ‘You know, you’re the real Cassie.’
[WE ALL DIED SWOONING]
Ant-Man and the Wasp flies into theatres July 6, 2018.
Thanks to Walt Disney Studios for bringing me to Los Angeles on an all-expense paid trip. As always, all opinions are my own.
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[…] couldn’t publish until after the film is in theatres. So here’s the second part of our Paul Rudd interview with spoilers! […]