Film Phase 3C — Ragnarok & The Infinity War (2018)

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Name: Ant-Man and the Wasp
Released: 2018-07-06
Duration: 118 min
Rating: 6.9
Cast: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Hannah John-Kamen, Randall Park

"Real heroes. Not actual size."

Released July 6, 2018 1h 58m ★ 6.9TMDB ★ Essential

Just when his time under house arrest is about to end, Scott Lang once again puts his freedom at risk to help Hope van Dyne and Dr. Hank Pym dive into the quantum realm and try to accomplish, against time and any chance of success, a very dangerous rescue mission.

How to watch STOP before credits — the credits scene belongs RIGHT AFTER Infinity War

Watch note

Janet van Dyne is rescued from the Quantum Realm. Ghost (confirmed for Doomsday) is introduced and partially healed. The post-credits shows the snap happening in real time.

Why It Matters in the MCU

The sequel deliberately scales back after Infinity War's cosmic devastation — it is a tightly plotted heist-comedy about a stolen lab in a miniaturised suitcase, and the franchise is better for it. Evangeline Lilly's Hope van Dyne is finally given equal billing, and the film is more interesting when she is driving the action than when Scott is. The Quantum Realm, initially comic-book window-dressing, turned out to be load-bearing infrastructure for Endgame's time-heist mechanics. Ghost's tragic antagonism — inflicting pain while looking for a cure — gives the film the franchise's most sympathetic villain since Zemo.

Watch These First

9 titles lead into Ant-Man and the Wasp — 19 hours in total, 6 of them essential.

Captain America: The First Avenger Essential 2h 4m ★ 7.0
Thor Essential 1h 55m ★ 6.8
The Avengers Essential 2h 23m ★ 8.1
Iron Man 3 2h 10m ★ 6.9
Thor: The Dark World 1h 52m ★ 6.5
Captain America: The Winter Soldier Essential 2h 16m ★ 7.7
Avengers: Age of Ultron Essential 2h 21m ★ 7.3
Ant-Man 1h 57m ★ 7.1
Captain America: Civil War Essential 2h 27m ★ 7.4

Create a watch plan for these 9

Opens the planner with just these titles, so you can set your own pace.

Where It Fits in the MCU

Ant-Man and the Wasp sits at position 105 of 165 in the MCU's story-chronological order, placing it within the Phase 3C — Ragnarok & The Infinity War (2018) era. It is rated Essential — must-watch for following the main MCU narrative. Watching in story-chronological order provides the most coherent character development experience — individual arcs build naturally toward the franchise's major crossover events, with each film's post-credits scenes carrying forward into what follows.