You know the Marvel Cinematic Universe is in a strange place when one of the biggest talking points to come out of the franchise’s latest release is somebody’s ass, but that’s what happens when you introduce M.O.D.O.K. to the world in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and immediately turn him into the butt (pun very much intended) of a joke.
The Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing has proven to be one of the most polarizing aspects of an altogether opinion-splitting blockbuster, but at least returning star Corey Stoll had fun. The actor burst out laughing when he was first asked to return as a giant floating head in a space chair, and has now fully embraced his status as the Quantum Realm’s ass.
However, things could have almost turned out very different, with the actor admitting to ScreenRant that there was a brief period of time where it looked like his teeny tiny little cheeks wouldn’t make the final cut. That would have been the biggest slap in the face yet for Marvel’s already-overworked effects team, but thankfully Stoll and his posterior survived the editing process intact. Well, except for the crack down the middle.
“Yeah, my schedule was such that I could only be there for a really limited time. And so I showed up right before they started principal photography. They showed me all this animatics and concept art, which I thought was hilarious and amazing.
That shot with the claw picking came up naked from behind? I just thought that was the most amazing. I couldn’t believe that they were going to have that in the movie. And then I heard later that they were going to cut it, and I was like, “No, you can’t cut the butt. It’s just too good.” I don’t know if it was my influence that made them put it back in, but I’m really glad.”
Bravo to Stoll for standing his ground, because as formulaic as much of the MCU’s output has unfortunately become over the last couple of years, we can confidently say we won’t be seeing the bare ass of an iconic cosmic villain that’s 90 percent cranium anytime soon. Or at least, we wouldn’t have thought so.
