Rashida Jones, Paul Rudd In Talks For ‘Ant-Man’

I Love You, Man co-stars Rashida Jones and Paul Rudd are reportedly in talks for Edgar Wright’s Ant-Man.

According to Schmoes Know, Rudd and Jones are close to finalizing a deal to play Hank Pym (Ant-Man) and Janet Van Dyne. Joseph Gordon-Levitt was also reportedly being eyed for the lead role.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige said that cast announcements will be made by the end of the year.

“[Edgar Wright] is working on just sort of tweaking the drafts with Joe Cornish, who now is a big director in his own right of course,” Feige said. “And we’re crewing up and prepping, and there should be some cast announcements probably before the end of the year.”

The folks over at Superhero Movie News noted that while Van Dyne will appear as a love interest and major supporting character, her alter ego, The Wasp, will not be featured in the film. An anonymous source told the website that there will be references to Van Dyne’s future as The Wasp.

The source also said Jones was picked for her chemistry with the other actors, naming Rudd and Chris Pratt, who will play Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy. In addition to I Love You, Man, Jones and Rudd worked together on Our Idiot Brother. Jones and Pratt co-star in Parks and Recreation.

Ant-Man was originally scheduled for November 6, 2015, but has been moved up to July 30. The film will open two weeks after Zack Snyder’s Batman vs. Superman. Summer 2015 will also include the release of The Avengers: Age of Ultron, Assassin’s Creed, Ted 2, and Jurassic World, among others.

Paul Rudd will reprise his role as Brian Fantana in Anchorman: The Legend Continues, which is scheduled for December 20. He will also star in David Wain’s upcoming comedy, They Came Together.

Rashida Jones will star in Steven Bernstein’s drama Decoding Annie Parker. The film is about the discovery of the BRCA1 gene, which is responsible for many breast and ovarian cancers.

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