Michael Douglas reveals he asked Marvel to kill off his 'Ant-Man' character but was refused
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Michael Douglas has opened up about his experience in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, joking that he wanted his character, Hank Pym, killed off after the second 'Ant-Man' movie.
During an October 19 appearance on 'Happy Sad Confused,' she discussed the challenges of leaving Marvel after signing a contract and reflected on his changing approach to his acting career and family life.
Michael Douglas reflects on his Marvel experience and Hank Pym's future
When podcast host Josh Horowitz asked Douglas whether he had wanted Hank Pym to be killed off during the last 'Ant-Man' movie, the actor replied, “I would have been killed off after the second one, but they wouldn’t let me.”
Douglas portrayed Hank Pym, the original Ant-Man, in Marvel’s 2015 film, which introduced Paul Rudd as Scott Lang and Evangeline Lilly as Pym’s daughter, Hope van Dyne. The trio returned for 'Ant-Man and the Wasp' in 2018 and 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' in 2023.
Douglas also made a cameo in 'Avengers: Endgame' in 2019. The two-time Oscar winner explained that he initially wanted to explore something new in his career after beating cancer in 2011 and making the HBO Liberace biopic 'Behind the Candelabra'.
He first turned towards comedy, leading to his role in Netflix’s 'The Kominsky Method', created by Chuck Lorre and co-starring Alan Arkin. Douglas then became interested in experiencing a green-screen movie.
“I [told] all my agents, ‘I’d like to do one of these green screen movies to see what they’re like,’ you know? Because it’s amazing,” he said. He explained that the process involved working with a green screen while being shown pictures of what the finished scenes would look like.
However, Douglas was surprised by how difficult this type of acting could be and how challenging it was to leave Marvel after committing to the franchise. “We did 'Ant-Man' and Paul Rudd was a wonderful actor — a lovely group — but then you can’t get out of it,” Douglas said, jokingly agreeing with Horowitz that he should have read the fine print.
Michael Douglas opens up about family adventures and Catherine Zeta-Jones
Douglas has become more selective about his acting work in recent years. His last starring role after playing Benjamin Franklin came in Apple TV’s 2024 miniseries, although he recently filmed a small part in Oliver Stone’s forthcoming 'White Lies'.
“I haven’t slowed down but I spend my time very differently now. I’ve traded the adventures for making movies for adventures with my family,” Douglas told PEOPLE. He added that he had made sure to plan at least one major family trip every year for the past few years.
His wife, Catherine Zeta-Jones, has declared him “the world’s best travel agent,” while Douglas described her as “the momarazzi,” recording every detail of their family experiences for posterity.
Douglas’ memoir also includes candid stories about his childhood, screen work, activism and love life, including his relationship with Zeta-Jones. One chapter discusses a difficult period in 2013, after a decade of marriage, when the couple faced several challenges at once and decided to spend some time apart.
Speaking to 'The Times', Douglas described their reconciliation as a mutual effort. “We’re good. We’re in good shape,” he said of their relationship.
The 'Ant-Man' star also reflected on their separation in his book, writing, “I never gave up hope that we would reconcile… Taking time away helped reignite the spark that had brought us together.”
