Well, we know one thing for sure about Ant-Man: Marvel wants it to be funny. A list of possible directors has leaked, and one unifying theme is that they’re all funny guys.
This list comes courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, and it has some interesting names on it.
Adam McKay
Best known for the Anchorman movies, McKay’s probably the one Marvel wants the most because, obviously, he’s worked with Paul Rudd. Marvel likely wants to keep Rudd happy, considering he signed onto one movie and is now stuck doing whatever Marvel winds up making him do. The main drawback is that McKay is busy as hell producing a whole string of movies, and he’ll probably want a bit more autonomy than Marvel is willing to give him.
Ruben Fleischer
Zombieland‘s probably the most relevant movie of Fleischer’s resume here, although Gangster Squad and 30 Minutes Or Less both have their charms. Of the list, this seems the most likely. Fleischer knows special effects and knows how to work inside the studio system, and he could use a guaranteed hit.
Rawson Marshall Thurber
From the director of Dodgeball and We’re The Millers! Yeeee-ah, doesn’t exactly seem to fit on an Ant-Man poster. But it tells you who they’re looking for.
It’s not a bad list of directors. More importantly, though, it tells us they want something a little lighter and less grim. Although, honestly, if they bring McKay on board, Marvel is just leaving money on the table if they don’t let him adapt The Irredeemable Ant-Man.