Michael Douglas Reveals He Asked to Be Killed Off in ‘Ant-Man 3’: ‘I Can Shrink to an Ant Size and Explode’

Christian Zilko
·2 min read
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As the Marvel Cinematic Universe established a stronghold over pop culture in the 2010s, taking on comic book roles became a lucrative trend for actors of all ages. But after the overwhelming success of “Avengers: Endgame,” esteemed thespians who joined superhero franchises often found themselves chasing another milestone: A dramatic death scene.

Michael Douglas has made no secret of the fact that he hopes his “Ant-Man” character Hank Pym receives an on-screen death sequence. While promoting the most recent franchise entry “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” the actor quipped that he would only return for a fourth film “as long as I can die.” But as it turns out, he privately lobbied for a death scene even earlier than that.

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In a recent appearance on “The View” (via Entertainment Weekly), Douglas revealed that he requested to have his character killed off in “Quantumania.” While Kevin Feige and company didn’t ultimately honor his wishes, the actor had no shortage of ideas about how to be killed on screen. But despite the fact that Hank Pym is alive and well, Douglas also appeared to rule out the possibility of suiting up for another Marvel film.

“[Getting killed off] actually was my request for the third one,” Douglas said. “I said I’d like to have a serious [death], with all these great special effects. There’s got to be some fantastic way where I can shrink to an ant size and explode, whatever it is. I want to use all those effects. But, that was on the last one. Now, I don’t think I’m going to show up.”

With his Marvel days seemingly behind him, Douglas has turned his attention to playing Benjamin Franklin in the Apple TV+ series “Franklin.” His turn as the Founding Father was eagerly anticipated by many history buffs and fans of series like HBO’s “John Adams,” but the series has been met with mixed responses from critics.

“If told with style, humor, or purpose, a factual fish-out-of-water story following Benjamin Franklin and his grandson, Temple (Noah Jupe), could’ve, in theory, proven entertaining and enriching,” IndieWire’s Ben Travers wrote in his review of the series. “Instead, ‘Franklin’ comes across as an apathetic history lesson, too content in its embodiment of French decorum to be bothered explaining why audiences of any country should care.”

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