July 6th, 2018.
That’s the initial release date for Ant-Man and the Wasp, at which point the Marvel sequel is expected to light up theaters at home and overseas – save for the United Kingdom, where the Peyton Reed-directed film isn’t due to arrive until August 3rd, 28 days after the fact.
Even by Marvel standards, that’s a pretty significant gap between one launch and the other, as it opens up a potentially dangerous window in which spoilers are likely to thrive. Word is the Powers That Be pushed Ant-Man and the Wasp‘s UK release in order to avoid a clash with the World Cup, the quadrennial football tournament that’s scheduled to kick off in Russia tomorrow, June 14th, and stretch right through until July 15th.
It’s a disappointing blow for Marvel fans uninterested by the World Cup and its global celebrations – Evangeline Lilly included, who told Empire Magazine (h/t CBM) that she’s “pissed off” by the sequel’s late release.
They always do that. Then what happens is people just pirate the movie and they see it in the worst way possible, like some shitty version online, instead of going to a theater. They go in the end, but I don’t like that staggering. I’m really going to get to the bottom of this for you. I’m as pissed off about it as you are.
Her co-star Paul Rudd was similarly perplexed by the whole situation, adding: “I don’t understand. Let me see if we can maybe get the World Cup moved.”
The question, really, is whether the decision to hold fire on Ant-Man and the Wasp – for UK viewers, at least – will impact the sequel’s performance overseas, as impatient audiences seek out an alternative method to watch the MCU film ASAP. As always, time will tell.
Ant-Man and the Wasp debuts in U.S. theaters first on July 6th, before making its way across the pond in time for August 3rd.