Ant-Man and The Wasp's Best Easter Eggs and Comic References

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Marvel's Ant-Man and The Wasp, in theaters now.

The sequel to 2015's Ant-Man introduced several new comic book characters to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, many of Ant-Man and The Wasp's nods to the source material were already revealed through trailers, TV spots and the full cast list. So, those fans eager to uncover a plethora of Easter eggs in the film may be a little disappointed.

While most Marvel Studios releases are filled to the brim with subtle comics goodness, the "hidden" treats in Ant-Man and The Wasp are largely shrunken or enlarged everyday objects, intended by director Peyton Reed to keep the audience off-balance. We'll leave spotting Hank Pym’s resized batteries and such to you, and instead dig up the sequel's most interesting references, comic book and otherwise.

Elihas Starr

While comics fans will undoubtedly appreciate the inclusion of such characters as Ghost, Bill Foster, Jimmy Woo and Sonny Burch, it's Elihas Starr who's easily the most satisfying. Hank Pym doesn’t have a ton of memorable villains in his rogues gallery, but Starr, aka Egghead, is probably his most prominent nemesis -- other than Ultron, that is. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the villain was introduced in 1962 in Tales to Astonish #38.

In the comics Ghost is a male character whose real name has never been revealed. He's also not Egghead’s kid. Further, Starr doesn’t have a wife or daughter in the comics; his only known family is a niece named Trish Starr. In the film he lacks his signature glasses and lab coat, but his bald head and scientific genius are enough to make him recognizable.

Project Goliath

The second trailer revealed that Bill Foster and Hank Pym worked together on Project Goliath, and that Foster grew as tall as 21 feet during their experiments. While that could simply be a nod to Foster’s superhero alter ego from the comics, Goliath, there's something that could open the door to another possibility.

The older Bill Foster is, of course, played by veteran actor Laurence Fishburne, but in a flashback the character is portrayed by his son Langston Fishburne. So, while the Hank and Janet: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. movie some fans have clamored for is a pipe dream, a Goliath spinoff set in the 1970s or '80s, starring Langston Fishburne, is certainly an intriguing notion.

Ant-Man’s Ants

In the first film, audiences fell in love with Antony and were heartbroken when he died. In the comics, the first ant Scott Lang named was Emma -- and, like in the movie, she helped him in his battle against Darren Cross, in 1979's Marvel Premiere #47 and #48.

In Ant-Man and The Wasp, Lang names two more insect companions: Ulysses S. Gr-Ant and Antonio Banderas. There's comic book precedent for naming ants after public features, with the short-lived 2015 series Ant-Man, he introduced Chuck Barris and Tony Wilson.

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X-CON

While Scott Lang’s homies Luis, Dave and Kurt only exist in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Ant-Man did have a security company in the comics as well. In the film, Lang and crew run X-CON Security Consultants, and in the comics the diminutive Avenger founded Ant-Man Security Solutions, which debuted in Ant-Man #2 (2015). Another similarity is that Lang hired two reformed criminals, Grizzly and Machinesmith, to work with him.

Stan Lee's Cameo

It’s always fun to try to spot Stan Lee in Marvel Cinematic Universe films. However, as he grows older, the legendary comics writer and editor has limited his cameos. In Deadpool 2 he only appears as a mural, and in Marvel's Netflix dramas he's only ever been seen in the background, in photos, posters and ads.

So, expect cheers when the 95-year-old icon shows up during Ant-Man and The Wasp's big chase scene. Right after The Wasp shrinks the motorcycle of one of Sonny Murch’s goons, she accidentally does the same to a parked car. The man who was about to get in the car is Lee, who exclaims, “The ‘60s were fun, but now I’m paying for it!”

Coffy Connection

The original Ant-Man shares a connection to Coffy, an early ‘70s blaxploitation film starring Pam Grier. The filmmakers used a song titled “Escape” by Roy Ayers from the Coffy soundtrack for the scene in which Luis explains the Hank Pym heist to Scott Lang. Well, the same jazzy number plays in Ant-Man and The Wasp when Luis is interrogated by Sonny Burch and his men.

Lost in the Quantum Realm

In the comics, Janet van Dyne was believed killed at the hands of Thor at the end of Marvel's 2008 "Secret Invasion" crossover event. However, she had actually been shrunken down to the Microverse, where she was lost for several months. The Microverse is the comics equivalent of the Quantum Realm, and just like in the film, it was Hank Pym who comes to rescue her -- albeit a lot sooner.

Stature

As seen in the trailers, Scott Lang’s daughter Cassie tells her father that he needs a partner to watch his back. He guesses she means Hope van Dyne, but she corrects him by stating she's talking about herself. At the end of the movie Cassie tells Hope she wants to help people when she grows up.

Both of those moments allude to Cassie's superhero alter ego from the comics, Stature. Unlike Hank, Scott or Janet, this heroine doesn't need a suit to shrink or grow; her exposure to Pym Particles growing up imbued her with those abilities. In the comics she is an integral member of the Young Avengers.

Time Vortex

Here we go, the MCU loophole we’ve been waiting for: In the mid-credits scene, before Scott Lang heads into the Quantum Realm to collect energy from the healing quantum field, he is told to avoid time vortexes. Boom! Doctor Strange may not have the Time Stone any longer, but Ant-Man and The Wasp introduces a way to traverse time.

Even the suggestion of such a phenomenon is a huge, but considering that many of the deaths from Avengers: Infinity War are expected to be reversed in Avengers 4, this detail seems to be key to the plot of that 2019 sequel.

In theaters nationwide now, director Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man and The Wasp stars Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Peña, Tip “T.I.” Harris, Judy Greer, David Dastmalchian, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer, Laurence Fishburne, Hannah John-Kamen, Randall Park and Walton Goggins.