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How Ant-Man's Jonathan Majors Earned Paul Rudd's Respect

By Paige Strout Feb 10, 2023 9:12 PMTags
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Jonathan Majors is in his villain era.

Right after he makes his debut as the terrifying Kang the Conqueror in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the star is now going head-to-head against Michael B. Jordan in Creed III as boxing opponent Damian Anderson. But which of his characters is more likely to win in a fight?

"I would say, they're not in the same weight class," he exclusively told Francesca Amiker on the Feb. 9 episode of E! News, "probably, a draw."

And of course, Ant-Man himself Paul Rudd felt a bit left out, as he asked Francesca, "Do you wanna ask me who would win in a fight between me and Peter Klaven from I Love You, Man?" His response to his own question? "They would both lose."

For Jonathan, there's something wickedly fun in acting evil. "It's like deep down," he shared, "we're all 9-year-old kids who just want to run around and do what they want."

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Plus, he's got Paul's stamp of approval as he continues on as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's next big threat.

"This guy stepped on set knew exactly what he was doing, exactly what he wanted to do," Paul shared. "For all of us, it was just like, 'Let's get out of his way.'"

Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney

The 53-year-old continued, "He owned the space, he owned the scene, he owned everything. I mean, he's playing a conqueror and that's not an easy thing to do. But it was very clear from the very beginning that, 'Oh no, Jonathan has quite a handle on this part.'"

Hear more from the cast—including whether co-stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Michael Douglas had any advice for Jonathan about joining the Ant-Man franchise—in the full clip above.

E! News airs Mondays through Thursdays at 11 p.m. on E!.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania premieres in theaters Friday, Feb. 17.

Watch E! News weeknights Monday through Thursday at 11 p.m., only on E!.