China Reveals Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Release Date
China is set to give both Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever release dates. This move reverses the unofficial "ban" on Marvel/Disney for the last couple of years. (Famously the one big blockbuster that got its day on the big screen from Disney was Avatar: The Way of Water.) Deadline reports that Black Panther's sequel will hit theaters on February 7 and Quantumania follows on February 17. Now, this is a huge deal for Marvel as some of their Phase 4 output had a hard time getting to pre-Avengers: Endgame levels of profit without other overseas markets. From the word go, Ant-Man especially has the chance to join Spider-Man: No Way Home as the only post-Endgame $1 billion MCU movie.
This maneuver also signals a changing of attitudes in the country. When the hardline stance against some western entertainment came about, there were always critics who said it would not last. Letting Marvel back onto the playground would suggest the economic swoon forecasted by some might be afoot already. At any rate, Marvel fans in China can go see their favorites in the theater for the time being.
Two of Marvel's Heavy-Hitters Will Get Their Best Chance At $1 Billion
Here's the synopsis for the most recent trip to Wakanda: "In Marvel Studios' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – one of the most highly anticipated film events of the year – Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M'Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje (including Florence Kasumba) fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T'Challa's death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda. Introducing Tenoch Huerta Mejía as Namor, king of a hidden undersea nation, the film also stars Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Mabel Cadena and Alex Livinalli."
Marvel has a description for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania as it premieres worldwide in just a few short weeks: "In the film, which officially kicks off phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Super-Hero partners Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. Together, with Hope's parents Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), the family finds themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought was possible. Jonathan Majors joins the adventure as Kang."
Do you think there's any way Black Panther 2 reaches $1 billion? Let us know down in the comments!