Evangeline Lilly plays Hope van Dyne in Marvel's superhero film "Ant-Man." (Photo : REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian)
"Ant-Man" star Evangeline Lilly, 35, has dished on her role Hope van Dyne in the Marvel superhero film directed by Peyton Reed, 51. What she basically said was the character is not the typical woman seen in superhero films.
In a recent interview with Reuters, Lilly was asked about how she and Reed made sure Hope van Dyne is represented equally considering the criticism that women are underrepresented in superhero films and the fact that her character is the only leading female in a male-dominated film.
In response, Lilly described Hope van Dyne as "a fully realized person and not any way a cliché of what we expected a woman to be like in a superhero movie." With the character, both men and women are represented, which she said was really important to her and to Marvel.
Lilly admitted that he was hesitant at first when she was asked to play a feisty character like Hope van Dyne in the Marvel superhero movie "Ant-Man." When she took the challenge, she said she requested for Hope van Dyne to be made "more well-rounded as a human being."
What Lilly was eager to bring to Hope van Dyne's character was to ensure she was not merely a "kick-ass chick" that is extremely fun to watch. Instead, she wanted the character to show strength that comes through human vulnerability, passions and ability to forgive.
It must also be considered that Reed was not the original director who had been developing "Ant-Man" for years. A fan of the Marvel character, he told The Verge that he had definite ideas about the character and responded to how he felt about the script.
Reed said he had known Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige since 2003. He had developed "The Fantastic Four" for about a year at Fox when Feige was still a junior at Marvel. Eventually, he came in and pitched on "Guardians Of The Galaxy."
