Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe kicks off in a big way on February 17 as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania swarms into theaters. It is the third entry into the smallest Avenger’s series, and fifth featuring Paul Rudd as Ant-Man. This will be the first MCU movie role for Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conquerer, plus we get the return of Evangeline Lilly as the Wasp, Michael Douglas as Hank Pym and Michelle Pfeiffer as Janet Van Dyne.
If you don’t have the time to make your way through the entire MCU in story order before Scott Lang’s newest, we picked out the most important movies and show — plus a few bonus movies — to get you prepared to be conquered by Kang.
All movies and shows can be found streaming on Disney+.
Movies to watch before Quantumania
Ant-Man – His first foray into the MCU. This film is way more fun than it should be, and sets up the Ant-Man universe.
Captain America: Civil War – When the Falcon “knows a guy,” you get called to Berlin to help Captain America battle Iron Man. Thinks for thanking of him, Steve Rogers!
Ant-Man and the Wasp – Not as strong as the origin story, but still a fun jaunt. Walton Goggins is great as Sonny Burch, we get to meet Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Michael Peña’s voice-over storytelling still rocks.
Avengers: Endgame – No, I didn’t forget Infinity War, Scott Lang and the crew just aren’t around for it. Thanks to the most important rat in the universe, Lang returns to help the Avengers devise the Time Heist that brings back all those that Thanos snapped.
Disney+ series to watch before Quantumania
Loki (Season 1) – Short list here, but we get to meet Majors’ “He Who Remains” in the season finale of Loki. He Who Remains introduces the premise of Kang the Conquerer and the variant versions, which seems to be not just the important storyline for Quantumania, but Phases 5 and 6. You could just watch the sixth episode of the first season — “For All Time. Always.” — but the whole thing is worth a rewatch.
Bonus movies
Avengers: Infinity War – As mentioned above, Lang and the crew weren’t around for Infinity War (and most of Endgame) as they were under house arrest (Lang), trying to get Janet back (Lang, Pym, Hope), stuck in the quantum realm (Lang) or blipped (everyone but Lang). It still feels weird to watch Endgame without Infinity War, however, so it’s a bonus watch.
Spider-Man: No Way Home – It’s Peter Parker x 3. While the story doesn’t directly deal with Kang or Ant-Man, it does mention multiversal issues and therefore could be useful.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – I mean, multiverse is in the title.
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