Marvel Report Indicates Ant-Man 3 CGI Suffered Because of Another Major Marvel Movie

Among the most common of criticisms for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a resounding disappointment in the film’s large-scale visual effects. Given the film takes place in an alternate reality, the vast majority of the picture takes place on digitally-created set pieces—set pieces, in which, a new report says were largely neglected because of work needed on a different Marvel Studios film. A new piece from Vulture says VFX workers were pulled off Quantumania to place more focus on the critically-acclaimed Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

“This was like a second wave of what happened with James Cameron on Titanic, where the compositors were basically taking naps under their desks, because there wasn’t enough time between shifts to go back home, then come back,” an anonymous VFX technician told the website. “Now, the entirety of the industry that has been touched by Marvel is permanently seared, and that’s what’s causing the most burnout.”

Despite less-than-stellar reviews, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has performed admirably at the box office, having grossed $257 million worldwide through Tuesday night. Still, the Vulture includes quotes from three separate sources suggesting Wakanda Forever was a long focus of Marvel Studios, leading to a massive crunch to get Quantumania ready for its premiere.

“A lot of us are sitting here thinking, The money is there. Why is it not coming down? Marvel spending a bit more money to pay more VFX people wouldn’t make that much of a difference for the executives all the way at the top,” another source told the site. “But if it comes down to them not being comfortable with their bank numbers and us working until burnout, we lose out every time. Honestly, I equate it to human greed.”

Since its inception in 2008, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has grossed upwards of $28 billion for Disney. Factoring in the $5 billion worth of production budgets across the franchise’s 30-some films, doubling it to account for marketing and promotion, it’s still likely the Mouse has netted at least $18 billion in cold, hard cash thanks to the ballooning box office receipts Marvel has earned.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is now in theaters. What’d you think of the latest entry in the Ant-Man franchise? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section!