It appears that another MCU secret has been let out of the bag ahead of schedule. Iconic actor Bill Murray, star of classic movies including Ghostbusters and Lost in Translation, has reportedly spilled the beans on who he's playing in Ant-Man 3.
Appearing on the latest episode of the Eli Manning show, Murray appeared to suggest that he'll be portraying a "bad guy" in the upcoming Marvel movie. The star didn't go on to confirm exactly who he was playing in the Marvel Phase 4 project, though, so he did maintain some secrecy about his role in the superhero flick.
Chatting casually over some takeout food, Manning brought up Murray's forthcoming MCU role before asking him what his superpower would be. In typically droll fashion, Murray replied: "My power is that I'm a bad guy" before chuckling into his napkin.
Speaking to Variety back in October, Murray confirmed that he had signed on to play a role in Ant-Man 3, citing director Peyton Reed as a key reason behind his decision to say yes. The BAFTA- and Golden Globe-winning actor said that one of Reed's other movies – Bring It On – was a "damn good" movie, and added that Reed's "funny" and "humble" personality convinced him to sign up for the Marvel flick.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania finished filming in November 2021 ahead of a July 2023 release date. The Marvel movie will see the likes of Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lily, Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer reprise their roles from the previous film in the franchise, Ant-Man and the Wasp.
The film will also bring another iconic Marvel supervillain – Kang the Conqueror – into Marvel's live-action universe. Kang will be played by Jonathan Majors (Lovecraft Country, The Harder They Fall), with the actor having played one of Kang's variants in the first season of Marvel Disney Plus show Loki.
Analysis: is Bill Murray serious about his Ant-Man 3 role?
On the surface, it does appear that Murray has confirmed he'll be playing a villain in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. After all, while cast and crew members have to sign confidentiality agreements when they sign onto a Marvel production in order to prevent them from revealing any major spoilers, some actors do accidentally let things slip.
Current Spider-Man and Hulk actors Tom Holland and Mark Ruffalo used to be so bad at avoiding spoilers, in fact, that the pair became as famous for divulging sensitive information pre-release as they were for their MCU roles.
Murray, then, isn't the first (and won't be the last) to partly or fully spoil any element of a Marvel movie. And it seems he wouldn't be concerned with spoiling some elements of Ant-Man 3, given that he's confirmed his MCU role is a one-time deal. Speaking to German magazine Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (via ComicBook.com), Murray said: "Now I've at least tried out what it's like to shoot a Marvel movie, but I don't think I need that experience a second time."
Given those quotes, it's likely that Murray is telling the truth about his villainous role in Ant-Man 3.
But what if he's not? What if Murray's "bad guy" comment, in response to Eli Manning's question, was just a throwaway remark about how he doesn't give two hoots about anything these days, especially when you factor in his age? Maybe Murray calling himself a "bad guy" simply implies that this is how he's perceived by some people due to his nonchalant attitude and personality? There's only one person who knows exactly what he meant, and that's Murray himself.
Still, it'll be a while before we find out which Marvel character he'll play in Ant-Man 3. The movie isn't out for another 18 months, and the only movie Murray has coming out before July 2023 is Wes Anderson's Asteroid City, which reportedly arrives in theaters sometime in 2022. There won't be many opportunities for us to quiz Murray, then, on his "bad guy" comments.
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