Disney may be well known for executing the “Evil Stepmother” trope, but that dynamic is nowhere to be found in “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” In fact, Evangeline Lilly loved Hope and Cassie’s dynamic so much, she wants a spinoff for them.
Granted, Hope (Lilly) isn’t referred to as Cassie’s (Kathryn Newton) stepmom, and Hope and Scott (Paul Rudd) aren’t officially married, as far as we know. But at this point, they’re very solidly together, and Hope has clearly struck a good relationship with Cassie — so good, in fact, that the two secretly work together on quantum science projects.
With Hank Pym’s (Michael Douglas) help, Hope and Cassie build a device that can send a signal to, and subsequently map the Quantum Realm. It’s something they’re clearly proud of building together, and excited to show off to their loved ones. And for Evangeline Lilly, that working relationship was a joy to put on screen.
“I loved that relationship. I loved that dynamic. I just wanted more of it,” Lilly told TheWrap. “I was like, ‘How do we fit this into the movie a few more times before we get to the end?’ I figure we just have to do a spin-off. We just have to do a Wasp and Cassie spin-off because I want more of that. It was so fun!”
She continued, “It was so fun playing the stepmom who’s like, ‘You know what, I just don’t see you the way he sees you because I never changed your diapers. And I didn’t see you spill milk on the table.’ And I just see this incredible, brilliant young woman. I don’t know what he’s hung up on. Like, [Hope] sees [Cassie] as a woman, a grown woman. And I think Hope’s just a little bit confused as to why Scott can’t.”
Meanwhile, Hope’s relationship with her own mother is a little bit rocky, considering Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) is clearly hiding a whole lot of her time in the Quantum Realm — and, as it turns out, with Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) — from her family. But even that more fraught relationship is something Lilly enjoyed exploring.
“It’s a beautiful complication in a superhero movie between two women, which for me was just such a delight because I so rarely get the opportunity to collaborate on screen in an intimate way with women,” she said. “And it really was a different experience. And it was such a rewarding experience. And we became so close off screen, and we’re really supportive of one another throughout the whole process. And that’s a friendship that will mean something to me forever.”
You can watch TheWrap’s full interview with Evangeline Lilly in the video above.