Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania star Evangeline Lilly stirred up controversy again with an Instagram post promoting a controversial live stream discussing the recent World Economic Forum conference.
The Wasp star has dipped a toe into controversial waters before, criticizing COVID-19 social distancing measures in an Instagram post back in March 2020. Though Lilly quickly apologized for this post, her dismissive attitude towards COVID curbing measures seemed to have remained strong, as the actress posted pictures of a rally against vaccination mandates in early 2022.
Even as some speculated that Lilly’s controversial stances could preclude her from future participation in the ever-expanding MCU, she looks to be playing a key role in both the upcoming Ant-Man 3 and its ongoing marketing campaign.
But what conspiracy train has Lilly hopped on this time, and what potential consequences could it have for her future in the franchise, or, for that matter, the wider world?
Evangeline Lilly’s Newest Conspiracy Post
Evangeline Lilly took to Instagram to share a poster for an upcoming live stream hosted by former actor and current media personality Russell Brand.
This stream, titled “WEF Royal Rumble” comes on the heels of this year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, a conference featuring a host of economic and political leaders discussing the state of the world. According to Brand’s own post promoting the stream, it is for anyone who has “Ever been called a ‘Conspiracy Theorist'” and claims to help get people “understanding what the WEF is up to!”
The image shared by Brand (as seen below) and, subsequently, promoted by Lilly, features political, technological, and economic leaders like Mark Zuckerberg, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Justin Trudeau, dressed as WWE wrestlers, seemingly suggesting some sort of underground collusion between the group’s members.
Brand has championed COVID conspiracy theories in the past, helping to push pieces of disinformation surrounding topics like Ivermectin and vaccinations into the mainstream.
The Ramifications of Evangeline Lilly’s Political Posting
While it’s not altogether clear what Brand plans to say in today’s live stream, beyond labeling a whole host of world leaders “WEF stooges,” some things are bound to happen. Brand’s signature contrarianism will likely manifest here, with the celebrity continuing his descent into hastily constructed mistruth.
Even as the issues and figures set to be addressed are complex and filled with grey, perhaps even black, the non-nuanced, conspiracy-ridden guff Brand will likely spout only serves to further obfuscate the very real issues on the table.
Evangeline Lilly’s choice to share such a controversial post shows a continued willingness to engage with fringe political elements. Although Brand’s comments will probably not be inflammatory enough to do much damage on their own, they will no doubt fan the flames of extremism that already threaten the global political stage. In amplifying Brand’s voice, Lilly is only increasing the range of his ideas.
No matter what the actress’ actions may bring, it’s fairly unlikely that Lilly’s questionable political stances will hold any real ramifications for her future as the Wasp within the MCU.
Although it’s possible that the Wasp falls to the might of Kang during the film’s potentially fatal events, Marvel doesn’t seem to be interested in parting with its controversy-linked stars, as seen through their own ambivalence to Lilly’s own past actions.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will debut in theaters on February 17.
