Martin Donovan is a champion character actor. You might know him best from Weeds, but he’s been in everything from beloved indie movies to completely unmitigated cheese. And now, he’s joined Ant-Man, in a role Marvel won’t discuss. So… who the heck is he?
According to the news broken by the Hollywood Reporter, Donovan has a “pivotal” role in the story. That could mean any of a number of things, so, let’s work down the list, shall we?
Donovan’s a talented actor with a lot of range, but he’s not an action star, either. So that would rule out, say, Eric O’Grady, another Ant-Man with a rather more… indulgent bent to his nature. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that he’s a HYDRA mastermind of some sort, although by the same token, we already know who the main bad guy of Ant-Man is.
So: Older gentleman. Not an action hero. Probably a bit sinister but not technically evil. For me, that all points to the Platonic ideal of “jerkass” in the Marvel Universe, none other than Henry Gyrich. Gyrich, for those unfamiliar, was a pain in the collective ass of the Avengers, a self-involved smug bureaucrat who bosses around them around at will, makes them fulfill EEO quotas, and generally serves as a troll. Basically if you need somebody to be an obstructive bureaucrat in the Marvel Universe, you give ol’ Henry a call.
Just how Gyrich might be pivotal in Ant-Man, I’m not sure, but it would make sense that they want to introduce the character. The Avengers need some sort of oversight, and the US government seems to be stepping into that role. But we’ll find out soon enough; Ant-Man arrives July 17th.