Move Over, Dominic Cooper! John Slattery Returning As Howard Stark For ANT-MAN

After months of behind-the-scenes problems and drama, Ant-Man officially began production in San Francisco, California. To celebrate the momentous occasion, Marvel issued a new press release…wow, that sounds really lame now that I’ve typed it out. Regardless, in addition to an updated plot synopsis, they revealed the complete cast for the film. Take a look at the names below, and see if any of those ring a bell for you…a Marvel bell, that is.

The film also includes outstanding additional cast including Corey Stoll (“House of Cards,” “The Bourne Legacy”), Bobby Cannavale (“Danny Collins,” “Annie,” HBO’s “The Long Play”), Michael Peña (“End of Watch,” “American Hustle”), Abby Ryder Fortson (“Togetherness”), Judy Greer (“13 Going on 30,” “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”), David Dastmalchian (“The Dark Knight,” “Prisoners”), Wood Harris (“Remember the Titans,” “The Wire”), John Slattery (“Mad Men,” Marvel’s “Iron Man 2”) and Gregg Turkington (“The Comedy,” “On Cinema”) and multi-hyphenate T.I. (“American Gangster,” “Takers”).

Did you see it? Third to last name. John Slattery! This means that Howard Stark will be appearing in Ant-Man. Although the character has appeared recently played by Dominic Cooper, Slattery preceded him when he played the older Stark ’70s film footage in Iron Man 2. More to the point, this means that last week’s Ant-Man rumor is partly true. The rumor stated that there would be a flashback sequence with a young Hank Pym meeting with Stark, Peggy Carter, Arnim Zola and a young Alexander Pierce. No word yet on those other characters, but it’s great to hear that Stark will have a role to play in the film. I could definitely see him as an associate/mentor to the young Pym.

Here’s a question that’s on my mind now: at what point does the transition between Dominic Cooper’s Stark and John Slattery’s Stark occur? Last week’s rumor suggested the flashback would tai place in the late’60s, and Agent Carter is set to take place in the late ’40s. At some point, Cooper is going to transform into Slattery, possibly early ’60s, and I want Marvel to record that momentous event!

SOURCE: Marvel