by Kim Filchak

Hello again! Yes this is Rampant Speculation returning once again to be your one stop shop for internet rumors too good to be true and to horrible to contemplate. Just when we thought the continuing drama of Ant Man was dying down for the week once it because clear that no one actually involved was going to say anything more on the subject suddenly it was back! This time it’s personal! No, not really, it is just same basic industry buzz just on a new subject. The question on everyone’s lips who was going to direct the film now that Edgar Wright has left the building. Several names have been tossed around and at this point it could be anyone. Except maybe James Ivory from Merchant Ivory, because what Ant Man has in action and adventure it totally lacks in any and all sort of regency drawing room politics and husband hunting.

Right not no one knows who is going to get the job, but there are quite a few contenders and a lot of people with very strong ideas of who should direct the film. Ladies and gentle, welcome to Thunder Dome.

What started all the chitterlings on the web was when the idea was born that Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn would be stepping in to replace Wright on Ant Man. Yesterday Slash Movies reported that a rumor was born on a Comic Book Movie (CBM) page stating that Marvel Studios was desperate for a director and had offered it to Gunn. The CBM page has since been deleted but that was all it took to start the speculation machine and all around internet freak out. Gunn himself has addressed those rumors, I believe he used the phrase “bullshit rumors”, with a few humorous tweets though no official denial has been issued from Marvel Studios.

“Waking up to a bee swarm of complete bullshit rumors on all sides. Happy Thursday!”

“I’m also playing all the Defenders in a Klump-like grab for Marvel power.”

The next three hats thrown into the ring come courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter (THR). This morning THR reported that Marvel Studios is working fast to find a director and that they already have a hat full of names to pick from but that there were three names that stood out.

“Sources say Rawson Marshall Thurber, Adam McKay and Ruben Fleischer are among a group of directors that are meeting with the studio to replace Edgar Wright, who abruptly exited the long-gestating project last week over creative differences.”

All three directors have done films I am deeply attached to so for me anyone of them would work. Mckay directed the Anchorman movies, which feature the greatest fight between rival news teams ever staged in the history of film. I mean, Brock killed a man with a trident! Thurber helmed Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story a movie for which I have a deep and profound love that laughs in the face of societies scorn and Fleischer directed Zombieland! Zombieland people! (We will agree to pretend Gangsterland never happened.)

It is clear from the names being dropped that Marvel Studios is still committed to the films goofy comedic tone, which should come as a relief to those who felt Wrights departure signaled that the film was going to end up an homogenized action film with no individuality or character of its own. No decisions have been made yet but they will need to be made soon. the clock is running down if they want to make their self imposed deadline of July 17, 2015. Anyone have any thoughts, feelings or opinions about these possible choices or any other director you think should take over the job feel free to leave them in the comments! I would love to know what people with better taste in movies than me think.