Hank Pym

: "This is your chance. To earn that look in your daughter's eyes. To become the hero that she already thinks you are. It's not about saving our world; it's about saving theirs."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
Doctor Henry Jonathan "Hank" Pym is an entomologist and physicist who developed the Ant-Man Suit after discovering the Pym Particles. For a time, he worked for S.H.I.E.L.D. as a consultant and became the original Ant-Man, fighting beside his own wife, Janet van Dyne, who had taken on the mantle of the Wasp, as they took on missions together, including one to capture his former ally, Elihas Starr. However, during a mission to stop a Soviet Union missile, Ant-Man witnessed the Wasp sacrificing herself to save millions of lives, as she had become trapped within the Quantum Realm, with seemingly no way to save her. Pym then changed directions and had founded Pym Technologies while also retiring as the Ant-Man, vowing never to use his invention again, turning his back on S.H.I.E.L.D. as he had found that Howard Stark and Mitchell Carson had tried to recreate his original designs.
Despite retiring from heroics for many years, Pym was forced into actions as he had learned that his former protégé, Darren Cross, had recreated the Pym Particles and planned to use it to create the Yellowjacket Suit, which Cross would then sell to organizations such as HYDRA and the Ten Rings. Pym had then joined forces with his daughter, Hope van Dyne, as they recruited Scott Lang to use the Ant-Man Suit and steal the Yellowjacket designs from Cross. Despite some troubles to get Lang to master their technology, Pym's plan eventually succeeded, and Cross was defeated. However, during the final fight, Lang had found himself transported inside the Quantum Realm and successfully escaped, giving Pym a new hope that he could save his wife. Pym also gained a respect for his own daughter's abilities, as he finally gave her a new Wasp Suit.
Pym and Hope then spent three years developing a way to save Janet from the Quantum Realm, while they were forced into hiding after a year due to the creation of the Sokovia Accords. Once Pym learned that Lang was getting signals from the Quantum Realm, they brought him in to assist them, despite him being on his house arrest. Despite their plans being challenged by Ghost and Sonny Burch, who had sought to steal the Mobile Laboratory in order to gain the research for their own purposes, Pym had finally managed to succeed in rescuing his wife, as they reunited after thirty-one years. However, while they attempted to learn more about the Quantum Realm, Pym was killed by Thanos, with his wife and daughter, before they were all resurrected five years later, due to the actions of the Avengers, who had defeated Thanos.
Having begun working with Cassie Lang, Pym was inadvertently transported into the Quantum Realm with the rest of his family. Having been separated from Cassie and Scott Lang, Pym began to learn of Janet's time in the Quantum Realm and was drawn into a conflict against Kang the Conqueror, as well as Cross, who had been trapped in the Quantum Realm for several years and had been transformed into M.O.D.O.K. Eventually, Pym was able to overpower Kang, using an army of highly evolved ants, which overwhelmed Kang, while Pym and his family were able to escape the Quantum Realm.
== Biography ==
=== Early Life ===
==== Military Career ====
: "May I remind you, Dr. Pym, that you’re a soldier...""I’m a scientist."
: ―Mitchell Carson and Hank Pym[src]
Henry Jonathan Pym was born between 1941 and 1950. As a young promising scientist, Pym trained in the United States Army, before he was recruited into S.H.I.E.L.D. to work as a consultant. Pym eventually discovered a type of particles that could shorten the distance in between an object's molecules, effectively reducing its size, while maintaining its entire mass. Utilizing the newly discovered particles, Pym developed a suit that could shrink a human being into the size of an ant, while it maintained the true strength and resilience of the wearer.
=== Ant-Man ===
==== Creating the Suit ====
: "I created the formula that altered atomic relative distance. I had learned how to change the distance between atoms. That's what powers the suit. That's why it works. But it was dangerous. It was too dangerous."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
Using the Pym Particles, Pym created the Ant-Man Suit which had allowed him to control the effects. Pym had also developed the EMP Communication Device, the device which allowed him to telepathically communicate with Ants. He tried the device on carpenter ants and found that it worked, so he proceeded to try it on bullet ants, but they disobeyed him. He shrunk down to their level in hopes that they listened to him then, but still nothing. He pressed the button to make himself human size again only to find it was fried. He then had to get past a centipede to reach the extra Pym Particle Discs to resize himself. He even got help from the bullet ants. Since then, Pym had gone around the world performing more missions for S.H.I.E.L.D., with this revolutionary technology that he was using. In 1970, Pym was stationed at Camp Lehigh with Howard Stark and Peggy Carter, working on his Pym Particles.
Pym had also begun working with both Elihas Starr and Bill Foster on researching the Quantum Realm. However, it soon became clear that Starr had intended to steal Pym's plans for the Quantum Realm for himself and create his version of the Quantum Tunnel to access it. Once Pym discovered Starr's plans, he discredited him from all their research, forcing Starr to go into exile as a punishment. During this time, Pym married Janet van Dyne, as the two of them soon had their daughter, who they had named Hope van Dyne, as they all moved in the Pym Residence, while they had still continued field work for S.H.I.E.L.D.
==== Mission in Buenos Aires ====
: "The tunnel is dangerous, you have no idea what you're dealing with!""We wouldn't be here if you hadn't shut me out, Hank, but god forbid Doctor Henry Pym ever listen to somebody else!""So that's your excuse for being a traitor?"
: ―Ant-Man and Elihas Starr[src]
During his time working with S.H.I.E.L.D., Pym worked alongside Bill Foster on Project G.O.L.I.A.T.H., although the project was abandoned due to Pym and Foster's disagreements. Pym was joined on S.H.I.E.L.D. field missions by Janet van Dyne who would wear the Wasp Suit. Together, Pym and van Dyne were tasked to track down Elihas Starr, who had escaped to Buenos Aires with their stolen technology.
Pym met up with van Dyne at a bar in the city, where she was looking for Starr as they flirted with one another. Eventually, Starr stepped out of the hotel, as van Dyne had recommended that they keep their distance from Starr and allow all the ants to keep track of him, using their EMP Communication Devices until the time was right. However, Pym was determined not to allow Starr to escape, and insisted it was the right time as he walked away from the bar to follow behind Starr.
However, while they were following Starr down the streets, Pym got too close and was eventually spotted by Starr, who had immediately began to run, with Pym and van Dyne chasing after him, while van Dyne commented on Pym's lack of stealth. They followed Starr to a factory where they discovered he had armed guards, as they agreed to use the Ant-Man and Wasp Suits to gain their access, which Pym had shrunk down and kept in his pocket, ready for the mission.
Wearing the suits, Ant-Man then used the ants he controlled to write a message of hello to the guards, before Wasp regrew to her normal size and attacked one guard, while Ant-Man managed to disarm the second and knock him unconscious. While Wasp blew her husband a kiss, they were forced to shrink once again when more guards began shooting at them, with Ant-Man riding on the back of one winged ant while Wasp used her own wings to fly inside the facility undetected.
Once they were inside, Ant-Man and the Wasp swiftly subdued more of the guards, before they then realized that Starr was attempting to activate the Quantum Tunnel. Shrinking back down, Ant-Man went to confront Starr while Wasp went to destroy those plans for the tunnel. Ant-Man swiftly managed to subdue all of Starr's guards, before he insisted that the Tunnel was dangerous, while Starr claimed that they would not be there if Pym had not shut him out from their work.
However, before Ant-Man could attempt to reason with Starr, he was then shot at by more of the guards, as he shrunk down to avoid the gunshots, only for them to hit the tunnel, causing it to overload. Ant-Man then regrouped with Wasp, who had destroyed the plans, only for them to witness the blast of energy knocking Starr unconscious. Although Ant-Man attempted to rescue Starr, their path was blocked by falling debris as they found that it now could not be shut down.
With little time left until the tunnel imploded, Ant-Man and the Wasp were then forced to make their escape from the facility, with Ant-Man riding on another flying ant, moments before the tunnel lost complete control and caused a massive explosion, with the force from the blast knocking them onto a nearby roof. Ant-Man and the Wasp had then watched, as the facility had burned to the ground, knowing that Starr would have been killed by the massive blast of Quantum Energy.
==== Mission in Berlin ====
In 1987, a group of radicals in the Soviet-controlled East Berlin discovered a piece of an old HYDRA technology; the leaders of S.H.I.E.L.D. decided to send an agent to Berlin and stop them from reverse-engineering it. Howard Stark confronted Pym about giving S.H.I.E.L.D. his Ant-Man Suit. However, Pym was unwilling to give his suit to anyone else, so Agent Peggy Carter had to convince him to go to Berlin personally. To see if the suit actually worked, she fired a few bullets at Pym, and he became small like an ant in the blink of an eye.
In Berlin, Pym successfully snuck past the Berlin Wall only to be spotted by a guard dog. Pym managed to escape however by jumping on an anti-personnel device which then fired him to safety. He made his way into the radicals' headquarters by controlling a flying ant. He discovered that the group had not even built the device yet. He then heard screams and found a group of HYDRA scientists torturing a prisoner. Hank intervened and defeated them, liberating the prisoner in the process. Back at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters, Stark thanked Pym and told him that was his last mission but Pym refused realizing there were more problems in the world. Still only trusting himself to wear the Ant-Man suit, Pym decided to continue to do field missions.
==== Losing His Wife ====
: "I knew I had to shrink between the molecules to disarm the missile, but my regulator had sustained too much damage. Your mother, she didn't hesitate."
: ―Hank Pym to Hope van Dyne[src]
Pym and Janet van Dyne were sent to intercept a Soviet missile that had been launched against the United States of America, prompting both to immediately depart for their mission.
As they were preparing to leave the Pym Residence for their mission, Pym and van Dyne were seen by Hope van Dyne, who questioned where they were going. While Pym dealt with all the bags, Janet told Hope they were going on a business trip and Rose would be looking after her, with Janet making jokes to make their daughter feel better. Since Janet had reassured her, Pym then said his goodbyes to their daughter as they collected their bags and departed their house.
As they had arrived at the location, Pym and van Dyne had then put on their Ant-Man and Wasp Suits and attempted to stop the missile. However, they had arrived too late and realized that the missile had already been launched, putting thousands of lives at risk as a result. Managing to board the missile in time, Ant-Man and the Wasp were unable to break into the missile to disable it. Ant-Man tried to shrink to subatomic size, but his own suit had sustained heavy damage.
Now with little time remaining to stop the missile and save thousands of lives, Wasp simply did not hesitate to disable her own suit's safety measures, as she shrunk to subatomic size in order to penetrate the missile's titanium shell, much to the horror of Ant-Man who could do nothing to prevent his wife's sacrifice. Despite disabling that missile, and completing their final mission, Wasp had disappeared within the subatomic Quantum Realm and was now lost, seemingly forever.
With his wife seemingly gone forever, Pym was forced to return to his home, where he informed his daughter that her mother would not be returning home. Desperate to find any possible way of rescuing his wife, Pym had then spent the next ten years studying everything he could about the Quantum Realm, in the hope of finding his lost wife, to the detriment to his relationship with Hope, whom he sent away to boarding school, which had caused damage to their relationship.
==== Quitting S.H.I.E.L.D. ====
: "I formally tender my resignation.""We don't accept it. Formally. Hank, we need you. The Pym Particle is a miracle. Please, don’t let your past determine the future.""As long as I am alive, nobody will ever get that formula."
: ―Hank Pym and Howard Stark[src]
The disappearance of Janet van Dyne traumatized Pym, as he began to distrust his allies and his own technology. In 1989, despite being sent on his mission into Moscow, Pym made a detour into the S.H.I.E.L.D. lab, discovering attempts to recreate the Pym Particles and kept this secret from him, knowing Pym would not approve. Enraged by this, Pym went to the Triskelion to confront Howard Stark over this, noting that it took nerve to attempt to replicate his designs.
Although Mitchell Carson insisted he should be in Russia, Pym just insisted he was a scientist and not a soldier, although Stark claimed that he should act like one and so he should now help them put his technology to good use. With Pym still refusing to help them, Carson had then coldly claimed that he should have protected his wife with the same ferocity, leading to Pym slamming Carson's face down onto the table, with Peggy Carter just stopping Pym from hitting Carson a second time, while Stark did nothing to defend Carson and Pym had threatened to hit him again if Carson dared to mention his wife.
Pym then tendered his own resignation from S.H.I.E.L.D., although it was refused by Stark, as he claimed that they still needed him. Stark argued that the Pym Particle was a miracle that could still change the world, while also insisting that Pym should not allow the mistakes of his past to determine their future. However, Pym had still remained strong on his decision, as he informed Stark and the rest of the group that he would never allow his formula to be used as long as he was alive. With that, Pym then stormed out of the Triskelion, as Stark and Carter had then both agreed to let him leave without a struggle.
Knowing the dangers that his own technology possessed, Pym then returned to the Pym Residence where he took his Ant-Man Suit and placed it in his safe. As Pym took one final look at the suit, he locked the door of his safe before then sealing it shut with the intent to never again wear his own suit and become the Ant-Man again. For the next twenty years, the suit then remained locked away from Stark and the rest of S.H.I.E.L.D., with the power of the Pym Particles being hidden from the world for its own protection as Pym viewed it, believing it to now be too dangerous if it had ever fallen into the wrong hands. Believing that Janet was dead for a moment, Pym dated a woman named Linda until they ended up hoping that Janet was still alive.
==== Pym Technologies ====
: "I took on a young protégé called Darren Cross.""Darren Cross. He’s a big deal.""But before he was a big deal, he was my assistant."
: ―Hank Pym and Scott Lang[src]
Having resigned from S.H.I.E.L.D., Pym created his own company, which he named Pym Technologies. Although he still continued to bury all the research into the Pym Particles and the Ant-Man Suit, Pym Technologies was a huge success, earning Pym billions and making him one of the richest men in the world. As he continued to take an active part with their company, Pym hired Darren Cross as his assistant and trained him up, as Pym had soon come to look at Cross like the son he never had, seeing much of himself in Cross.
Seeing the potential in the young man, Pym took him under his wing and, training him as his protégé, as a result, Cross developed a strong connection with Pym and found a fascination with the rumors of the Ant-Man and the secrets of the Pym Particles, although Pym always dismissed the stories as an urban legend. As Pym had gotten older, a vote was then taken on whether or not he should continue being a part of their company. This vote came down to Hope van Dyne, who voted her father out of the company, allowing Cross to become the new CEO.
Over the next few years, Pym rarely, if ever, returned to Pym Technologies and instead lived as a recluse inside of the Pym Residence, still continuing his older experiments to try to understand the Quantum Realm in the hope of finding some way to rescue Janet van Dyne. Pym was later contacted by his estranged daughter, Hope, who told him that Cross was trying to replicate the Ant-Man Suit and sell it to other parties, such as HYDRA and the Ten Rings, having rebranded the technology as the Yellowjacket Suit and weaponized the technology for military purposes. Knowing of the dangers of Cross trying to replicate his work, Pym agreed to help her.
=== Next Ant-Man ===
==== Reunion with Darren Cross ====
: "Darren, there’s a reason that I buried these secrets.""So you finally admit it. We could’ve done this together, Hank. But you ruined that. That's why you're the past and I'm the future."
: ―Hank Pym and Darren Cross[src]
Pym was invited to a presentation at Pym Technologies and, much to the surprise of everyone, Pym did indeed attend, suspecting that Cross will show how far he had managed to develop the Pym Particle technology for his own. As he drove into the facility, the security guard could not hold back his shock upon seeing his arrival, to which Pym told him that he was not dead as some seemingly believed. When Pym entered the building, the next security guard asked to see his I.D., to which Pym simply pointed to the portrait of himself hanging on the wall.
As he explored the building for the first time in decades, Pym was greeted by Hope van Dyne, who refused to call him dad despite his wishes. Upon seeing Pym's arrival, Darren Cross greeted him warmly and welcomed him back. As he walked to the presentation, Pym was greeted by Mitchell Carson who asked how retirement was, but Pym sarcastically rebuffed him by dryly asking how his face was, reminding him of what happened last time they saw each other in 1989, causing Carson to quickly walk away with barely repressed anger. Lead to the presentation room, Pym took not of a diorama of Pym Technologies; however, the logo had been replaced with a new one saying Cross Technologies, which Cross noticed and gave him a mocking smile, causing him to seethe with anger.
Cross began his presentation and discussed the history of the Ant-Man Suit as Pym watched with a scowl on his face and when Cross asked him to remind everyone his repeated insistence that the stories were simply an urban legend, Pym only barely managed to repress his anger and stated that it was just a tall tale. Cross then revealed that it was a legend no longer as he finally was near completion on his own version of the technology which he was calling the Yellowjacket Suit, a battle armor designed to shrink and cause massive damage to an enemy force. Pym was left horrified as the video presentation demonstrated how, despite his best efforts to destroy the research, his Pym Particle technology was now being used to fuel weapons of war which could destroy the world. Only one guest questioned the presentation, noting that it was simply a suit and that as a weapon it could be highly dangerous if it were to fall into enemy hands.
After the investors had left, Pym confronted Cross and attempted to convince him that the technology was too dangerous; however, Cross was too caught up in the fact that Pym had finally confessed that the technology had existed and Pym had been lying to him. Despite Pym's best efforts to convince Cross that there were reasons why he had attempted to bury these designs all those years ago, Cross refused to listen, instead informing Pym that they could have made this breakthrough together, before leaving to speak to Carson.
Once Cross had left, Pym spoke to Hope van Dyne and they discussed how close Cross was to completing his work on the Pym Particles, with van Dyne noting that he had not yet mastered transforming live subjects. Although van Dyne continued to push the idea that she should be given the Ant-Man Suit and allowed to complete the mission, Pym refused as he did not wish to lose her like he had lost Janet van Dyne. He then informed her that he had found a guy who could help their mission to stop Cross.
==== Testing the Thief ====
: "You don’t have many options right now. Quite frankly, neither do I. Why do you think I let you steal that suit in the first place?"
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
Hearing of Scott Lang breaking into the Vistacorp Headquarters to pay back the money VistaCorp had been stealing from their users, Pym was fascinated by Lang's skills at hacking into one of the most advanced security systems in the world. Believing he was the right man for the job, Pym decided to test Lang's abilities by allowing him to learn about the whereabouts of his Ant-Man Suit in his safe. Pym watched from hidden cameras as Lang broke into the Pym Residence after disabling his security, with the help of Luis, and began searching for Pym's safe, easily getting inside of Pym's home.
Upon finding Pym's safe, Lang used quick thinking to copy Pym's fingerprint from a kitchen knife to get through the first door before freezing the second safe from the inside, causing it to break open. Once inside, Lang found the Ant-Man Suit and stole it, disappointed to not find any money. Satisfied by Lang's abilities, Pym waited until Lang had activated the Pym Particles in the suit and communicated with him through an intercom, as Lang attempted to cope with being shrunk down, until he was finally able to return to normal size.
==== Breaking Scott Lang Free ====
: "Second chances don’t come around all that much. So next time you think you might see one, I suggest you take a real close look at it."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
With Scott Lang back in jail after being caught by police sent by Hope van Dyne, Pym went to the jail pretending to be Lang's lawyer and met him there, using his Ants to cover up the security cameras. Once they introduced each other Pym explained that he was willing to give Lang a shot at redemption if he assisted him in his mission to stop Darren Cross. To this end, Pym sent a team of ants into Lang's jail cell to deliver the Ant-Man Suit to him, which he used to escape.
==== Training Scott Lang ====
: "My days of breaking into places and stealing shit are over! What do you want me to do?""I want you to break into a place and steal some shit.""Makes sense."
: ―Scott Lang and Hank Pym[src]
Pym brought Scott Lang back into his home and explained to him why he had been brought into their plan. While Hope van Dyne continued to question why he was there, Lang understandably had many questions, and Pym explained how he was able to train his Ants by using high frequencies to communicate with them, demonstrating by having the ants bring sugar into Lang's cup of tea, before explaining in more detail why he needed Lang to assist him in stopping Darren Cross' plan.
Taking Lang into the basement, Pym showed him what he and van Dyne had been planning for the last few months in their attempt to stop Darren Cross from building an army with the Yellowjacket Suit. Lang remained skeptical and suggested that they call the Avengers to help them in their mission, but Pym dismissed this idea as he claimed he had spent much of his early career ensuring that Howard Stark did not get ahold of this technology, so he would not allow Tony Stark to use it either. When Lang remained unconvinced that he was the right man for the job, Pym gave a speech about how they were not doing this mission to save themselves, but to save their children and earn the respect in Cassie Lang's eyes, which Lang noted as a great speech before agreeing to help them.
Pym trained Scott Lang in learning to use and control the suit in such a way that he and it became one and the same, he demonstrated this by having Lang attempt to jump through the gap in a keyhole and turn back to normal size on the other side. Lang attempted this time after time but without a true understanding of the suit, he constantly failed and crashed into the door. Eventually, after much practice, Lang succeeded and jumped through the keyhole, only to crash into the wall on the other side, although he still claimed to have nailed the attempt.
The next stage of the training involved teaching Lang how to communicate and use the various forms of Ants at his disposal. To do this, Pym sent Lang into the ant's tunnels in his garden to meet them; these included Bullet Ants, Carpenter Ants, Crazy Ants and Fire Ants, all of which had their various uses and skills for their mission. However, when Lang would go into the tunnels, the size and numbers of the ants would often surprise and alarm him, causing him to regrow into his normal size, much to his embarrassment and Pym's annoyance. Pym also tasked Hope van Dyne in teaching Lang how to fight in the Ant-Man Suit.
Hank Pym found Scott Lang in his study one afternoon fiddling with the Ant-Man Suit's generator on the belt, claiming that he believed he could improve it. Pym told him to stop as any change to the generator would be highly dangerous as if the generator became unstable then the user could potentially fall into the Quantum Realm where they could be lost to time and space forever. Seeing Pym's fear of the dangers that this involved, Lang agreed not to fiddle with the suit any longer.
==== Explaining the Truth ====
: "Your mom died a hero. And I spent the next ten years trying to learn all I could about the Quantum Realm.""You were trying to bring her back.""But all I learned was we know nothing."
: ―Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne[src]
Despite Pym's best efforts, Scott Lang had still continued to struggle to master how to communicate with the Ants. As Lang became more frustrated, Hope van Dyne ordered him to commit to the attempt. To demonstrate that she should be the one going on the mission, van Dyne communicated with the ants and made them place the sugar in the tea before bringing in a small army to do the same. Pym yelled at van Dyne to stop and she stormed out of the house.
When Lang and van Dyne returned to the house after taking a moment to continue their training, Pym made the choice he had been avoiding for decades. He explained to Van Dyne the details of the final mission he had undertaken with her mother Janet van Dyne, telling her of how she had sacrificed herself to save millions of lives and been lost in the Quantum Realm which Pym had spent the next few decades trying to understand. Van Dyne hugged her father and their relationship finally began to rebuild once again, although the moment was somewhat ruined by Lang's comments.
=== Stealing the Yellowjacket ===
==== Duel at the Avengers Compound ====
: "Uh, guys, we might have a problem. Hank, didn’t you say this was some old warehouse? It’s not! You son of a bitch!""Abort! Abort now. He's going to lose the suit!"
: ―Ant-Man and Hank Pym[src]
To put his training to the test, Pym organized a mission in which Scott Lang would be sent to steal a device from one of Howard Stark's old facilities which would help them in their mission by disrupting transmissions from Pym Technologies, allowing them to sneak inside without Darren Cross' security team being aware of their presence.
As Lang rode Ant-thony to the facility while Pym and Hope van Dyne watched from the mansion, Lang quickly reported that the facility had become the Avengers Compound which was guarded by the Avengers. Realizing their mistake, Hope van Dyne ordered Lang to abandon the mission, but he refused. Once Lang landed, he was confronted by Falcon who attempted to stop him, causing them to fight. Lang was just able to overpower and defeat the Falcon before escaping the facility with the device.
==== Confronted by Darren Cross ====
: "All those years ago, you picked me. What did you see?""I saw myself.""Then why did you push me away?""Because I saw too much of myself."
: ―Darren Cross and Hank Pym[src]
Going through the house, Pym discovered that Darren Cross had seemingly broken into his house and was close to discovering their plans. Pym calmly spoke to Cross and as they spoke Scott Lang used the Ants to hide the plans. Cross invited Pym to join him at the presentation for his Yellowjacket Suit, as he claimed that he wanted his mentor to be beside him at his greatest moment of achievement. The two had a conversation about why Pym picked Cross as his mentor in the first place. Pym agreed and Cross left the house, seemingly having not found out about Pym's plans.
Pym discussed if Cross had known that Hope van Dyne was in the house. The question was seemingly answered when van Dyne was called by Cross, who ordered her to increase security at Pym Technologies, leaving the team with seemingly no hope of completing their mission. Scott Lang suggested that they could still complete their plan if they used the water pipes and increased their team to include people so as to complete other tasks. Realizing that Lang intended to hire his former team of Luis, Dave, and Kurt Goreshter, Pym attempted to argue.
==== Building the Heist Team ====
: "You'll forgive us if we’re not instilled with confidence.""Everybody. Kick back and relax a little bit, man. We know our business. We broke into this spooky ass house, didn't we?""I let you.""Well, one could say that I let you let me."
: ―Hank Pym and Dave[src]
Much to Hank Pym's annoyance, Luis, Kurt Goreshter and Dave were brought into his home and invited to join their team. The three seemed mostly surprised to have been welcomed back into the house after robbing it just a few days earlier. Scott Lang came into the room dressed in the Ant-Man Suit, scaring Luis out of the room when he demonstrated its shrinking abilities.
They worked out the new plan involving Luis, Kurt and Dave, giving them each individual tasks to complete, including allowing Luis to pose as a security guard at Pym Technologies. Pym remained unconvinced by their lack of professionalism and noted that they were doomed to fail with their help. Not helping Pym's confidence was Luis' instance to improvise during his mission by whistling as he believed it would help him blend in as a security guard, despite Lang and Pym's objections to the idea.
==== Infiltration into Pym Technologies ====
: "Don’t do this. If you sell to these men, it’s going to be chaos.""I already have, and for twice the price, thanks to you. It’s not easy to successfully infiltrate an Avengers facility. Thankfully, word travels fast."
: ―Hank Pym and Darren Cross[src]
The plan went underway and Pym arrived at Pym Technologies to meet with Darren Cross. Before Pym could enter however, he was stopped by Jim Paxton and Gale, who wished to question Pym over his relationship with Scott Lang. Pym tried to talk his way out of the situation, telling the men that if he did not get inside the building, a lot of people were going to die. Before he could be arrested, however, Dave stole the officer's police car and drove away, forcing them to give chase.
Once inside the facility, Pym was greeted by Darren Cross, who seemed delighted that Pym had turned up. Cross invited Pym and Hope van Dyne into the demonstration room for a private discussion on Cross' achievements. All while they spoke, Scott Lang made his way through the water line after Luis successfully opened the valves. Lang only needed to wait for Kurt Goreshter to disable the security systems for a moment so he could steal the Yellowjacket Suit and escape.
Cross welcomed Pym and van Dyne and walked them into the demonstration room, where his men immediately held them at gunpoint, revealing that he had learnt of their scheme. Cross trapped Lang and took the Yellowjacket Suit before welcoming Mitchell Carson into the room and introduced him as the representative from HYDRA; Pym punched Cross in the face and told him to reconsider selling his designs to the terrorist organizations.
Cross ordered his men to execute Pym, but changed his mind and decided to kill him himself. Before Cross could kill his former mentor, Lang broke free from the glass enclosure and he and van Dyne began fighting Cross' guards. Pym fought Cross and was shot in the shoulder before Cross escaped. Lang and Van Dyne ran to Pym's aid, and he ordered Lang to stop Cross while van Dyne stayed with him. Van Dyne told them they had to escape as the entire facility had been rigged to explode.
Pym revealed that the tank key-ring he kept with him was in fact a real tank which had been shrunk down. They transformed the tank to its original size and used it to escape. Van Dyne and Luis took Pym to get medical attention from a nearby ambulance as they witnessed the Pym Technologies building exploding from the C4 which Lang had planted inside. As Pym was treated for his injuries, Lang tracked down and fought Cross. Eventually, Lang was able to kill Cross by damaging his suit's internal mainframe, briefly teleporting him to the Quantum Realm before he was able to return to normal size.
==== Learning of the Quantum Realm ====
: "There must be something else. Well I suppose the human mind just can’t comprehend the experience, but you made it. You went in and you got out, that’s amazing."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
Back in his mansion, Pym spoke to Scott Lang about what he remembered from his experiences within the Quantum Realm and how he escaped, pushing him for any new details although Lang assured him that he had no recollection of what happened to him, which Pym explained must mean that the human mind cannot cope with such an experience which was why Lang had failed to remember.
Although he gained no real evidence about the realm, knowing that it was possible for someone to go to the Realm and return sparked a new passion within Hank Pym and a hope that it could be possible for Janet van Dyne to return to the normal realm once again. As Lang left, he was walked out by Hope van Dyne; when Pym went out into the corridor, he found Lang and van Dyne kissing. Lang claimed that it was van Dyne who had kissed him but Pym told him that he was full of shit; Lang did not disagree.
==== Handing Over the Wasp Suit ====
: "I realized you can't destroy power. All you can do is make sure it's in the right hands."
: ―Hank Pym to Hope van Dyne[src]
Pym had later taken Hope van Dyne back down into the basement of the Pym Residence, explaining to her that before her untimely death back in the 1980s, he and Janet van Dyne had been working on the prototype for the next Wasp Suit. He told her that although they had made it for her mother, he now knew that it should be used by Hope van Dyne. As Pym proudly unveiled the suit to his daughter, she did not disagree and happily accepted the suit, noting it was about time this happened.
While van Dyne got herself prepared to become the Wasp, Pym also worked with Scott Lang on making the Ant-Man Suit grow instead of shrink, using their technics that Pym and Bill Foster had worked on with Project G.O.L.I.A.T.H.. Pym was successful in one of the trials, but only for a few moments, before Lang passed out. In 2016, Lang had used the Ant-Man Suit to assist Captain America on his mission, violating the Sokovia Accords. Having been captured, Lang made his deal with Thaddeus Ross for house arrest. However, under the new accords, Pym and van Dyne were also forced to go on the run.
=== Search for Janet van Dyne ===
==== First Encounter with Ghost ====
: "Wing and blasters. So I take it you didn't have that tech available for me.""No, I did."
: ―Scott Lang and Hank Pym[src]
In 2018, the year Scott Lang was due to finish serving his sentence, Pym began building a Quantum Tunnel designed to be able to provide direct transport into the Quantum Realm. Since Lang was able to successfully come back from the Quantum Realm, he figured that his long-lost wife: Janet van Dyne, could possibly still be alive in it.
One day, after Pym activated this tunnel, Lang, with whom he had no contact for two years, called Pym only a few minutes later, reporting to have had a dream about the Quantum Realm in which he saw Janet playing with a young Hope van Dyne. Immediately after receiving this message, Pym arranged for Hope to retrieve Lang. After successfully bypassing Lang's Ankle Monitor, van Dyne delivered Lang to the lab. Despite still upset at Lang, Pym filled him up on the details about the tunnel, telling him that he might have had a quantum entanglement with Janet down in the Quantum Realm.
Pym and van Dyne took Lang along for a deal with Sonny Burch for the final part they needed, but the deal went sideways when Burch deduced van Dyne's identity and Pym's by proxy. van Dyne took action as the Wasp, forcibly taking the part they had paid for and leaving. But before she could return to Pym and Lang, she was attacked by a Ghost who attempted to steal the part. Lang donned a new Ant-Man Suit which Hank claimed was a work in progress and joined the fight, saving Wasp but allowing Ghost to get away with the shrunken-down lab.
==== Meeting Bill Foster ====
Having found out that Ghost had turned off the tracker on the Mobile Laboratory, the trio was left with no other option than to find Pym's former partner Bill Foster and request his help. Foster had worked with Pym on a project called Goliath where he had managed to grow up to twenty feet tall, but like with the Quantum Tunnel, Pym saw the malicious uses for this technology and had cut off the project, discrediting Foster and destroying evidence that the project had ever existed in an effort to make sure it was never recreated. Despite Foster's lingering bitterness about these events, he agreed to help them, advising that they use a regulator from one of Pym's old suits to track the lab.
==== Collecting the Suit ====
: "It was your life's work, Hank. I couldn't destroy that. Before I turned myself in, I shrunk it down and mailed it to Luis.""You sent my suit through the mail?!""Hey, the postal service is very reliable, you know?"
: ―Scott Lang and Hank Pym[src]
Pym soon despaired at this, however, realizing that there were only two suits whose regulators he could use: the first Ant-Man Suit, whose regulator had been destroyed when Scott Lang went subatomic into the Quantum Realm; and the second suit Lang stole to help Captain America, which he had promised to Pym that he had destroyed. Lang revealed that he did not, in fact, destroy the suit, though, having instead shrunk it down and mailed to Luis before he turned himself in, much to Pym's indignation. He then realized that the trophy in which he kept it, one that his daughter had given him, was in her possession at her school's show-and-tell. Lang and Hope van Dyne then snuck into Brookemont Elementary School and retrieved the suit before using the regulator to track the Mobile Laboratory into Ghost's lair, where they found a young woman sleeping in the Quantum Energy Chamber. As they tried to steal back the laboratory, she woke up and knocked the trio unconscious.
==== Captured by Ghost ====
When Pym came to, he found that he, Hope van Dyne and Scott Lang had been bound to chairs. Ghost revealed herself to be Ava Starr, daughter of another of Pym's former partners, Elihas Starr. Ghost explained that her father, after being fired and discredited from Pym's Quantum Tunnel project, was desperate to prove that he had been a part of the experiment and tried to recreate the tunnel in Argentina with disastrous consequences: everyone in the facility was killed by an explosion from the malfunctioning tunnel, including Ghost's mother and father. Ghost, however, was left intangibly unstable. She explained that this meant that she could pass through walls and turn invisible, and even exist in multiple realities at once, but it hurt her immensely and she had trouble controlling it. Additionally, it would soon kill her if not cured.
Bill Foster then revealed that he was working with Ghost to find said cure and had been since she was a little girl. They both had settled on the realization that a great quantity of Quantum Energy was the only thing that could even temporarily cure her, and that such a sum of energy could only come from Janet van Dyne herself, who had been absorbing Quantum Energy for several decades. Believing that taking this energy from Janet would kill her, Pym refused to help and faked a heart attack as a means of distracting Ghost and Foster long enough that the trio could escape with the Mobile Laboratory.
==== Arrested by the FBI ====
The three set the lab up in the Muir Woods and continued their work, using the newly acquired part to complete the mechanism and open a stable Quantum Tunnel. This allowed Janet van Dyne to temporarily possess Scott Lang's body, sharing a tender moment with Pym and Hope van Dyne as she gave them her exact coordinates but warned them that they had a matter of hours before the instability of the Quantum Realm would make it impossible to find her again for centuries. The trio was given notice that a resentful Sonny Burch had tipped off an inside man in the FBI as to Lang's breaking of house arrest, as well as Pym and van Dyne's location.
Lang fled to get back home before the FBI could find that he was missing, leaving Pym and van Dyne to try and escape, but unsuccessfully, by the time their Mobile Laboratory was shrunken, a large team of SWAT and FBI agents had surrounded them and forced them to surrender. The two were taken into custody at the FBI agency while Ghost stole the laboratory after attacking Stoltz, who was secretly trying to take the lab to Burch. While in custody, however, Lang managed to sneak in the Wasp Suit and a disguise for Pym which allowed them to escape.
==== Rescue of Janet van Dyne ====
: "You never said it was so beautiful, Scott."
: ―Hank Pym[src]
The trio had then tracked the Mobile Laboratory to Pier 39 where Sonny Burch boarded the ferry. Ant-Man's regulator had malfunctioned, causing him to grow sixty-five feet tall. Ant-Man then swam across the bay and easily retrieved the lab, but was barely able to get it to safety on land before passing out from the effort of staying in his giant form. Realizing he would run out of oxygen soon, Wasp swam down after him and fixed his regulator, saving his life.
Meanwhile, Pym readied the Quantum Tunnel and donned a Quantum Realm Exploration Suit. He shrank down into the Quantum Realm, having a brief run-in with dust mites before continuing through the Quantum Void and into the Quantum Realm. As he began his journey, the exposure to Pym Particles caused him to begin losing his mind, which was the reason he had given up being Ant-Man originally. As he was about to sink into insanity, a figure emerged and imbued him with Quantum Energy, saving him. The figure then revealed herself as Janet van Dyne.
The two began their journey back to the surface, during which Ghost began to siphon van Dyne's Quantum Energy, causing her extreme discomfort. This was halted by the arrival of Ant-Man and Wasp, who fought her off until Pym and van Dyne returned. Sensing Ghost's brokenness and life-threatening condition, van Dyne willingly imbued Ghost with Quantum Energy to temporarily heal her.
Pym and van Dyne soon retired happily to the coast together, taking the Pym Residence with them and choosing to keep a low profile since Pym was a wanted fugitive and van Dyne had been presumed dead for thirty one years.
=== Snap and Blip ===
==== Returning to Work ====
: "These are Pym Particles, all right? And ever since Hank Pym got snapped out of existence, this is it, this is what we have."
: ―Ant-Man to Avengers[src]
Pym and his wife then continued to help with the harvesting of quantum energy from the Quantum Realm to cure Ghost, creating a new Quantum Tunnel within Luis' van. Pym, his wife, and daughter were monitoring the controls on an empty parking lot of a building as Scott Lang was sent into the Quantum Realm.
Just as they were getting prepared to bring him back out, Pym and his family suddenly disintegrated into dust.
==== Restored to Life ====
: "You're welcome for all not being dust."
: ―Scott Lang to Hank Pym, Janet van Dyne, and Hope van Dyne[src]
Five years later, as a result of the Blip, Pym was restored to life. About a week later, Pym, his wife, his daughter, and Scott Lang attended Tony Stark’s funeral at Stark's home.
=== Interviewed for a Memoir ===
After coming back to life, Pym waited no time to get back to his lab. During one of Pym's lab days, Scott Lang came over to ask him about the potential applications of Pym Particles for his book, Look Out for the Little Guy!.
=== Adventure in the Quantum Realm ===
==== Helping Cassie Lang ====
: "She had some questions, okay? I can't help if people are inspired by me."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
Pym had discovered that during the five years he was gone, Cassie Lang had been reading his journals to learn more about the Quantum Realm. Over the next three years, Pym had gotten close with Cassie, becoming a grandfather-figure to her, and he decided to help her with her research and any questions she had. The two, along with Hope van Dyne, worked together to build a Quantum Satellite. During this time, Scott Lang wrote a book about how he helped save the world, and Pym read every single word of it.
During a family dinner, Pym accidentally revealed that Cassie had briefly been in jail before, which Scott did not know about. When Scott mentioned that he saved the world, Pym and the rest of the family began to tease him, as he frequently talks about it up. Cassie revealed to her father that she had been working with Pym and Hope, so Pym tried to cover it up as just ant science, but Scott didn't believe him so they decided to show him what they had really been doing.
They went down to Pym's lab, where Scott noticed an advanced ant farm, and Pym explained that the ants were building their own technology. They then explained they had been studying the Quantum Realm. Janet van Dyne enquired as to why she wasn't asked to consult on it, insisting to Pym that the Quantum Realm was dangerous. Cassie then presented the Quantum Satellite they built. But, upon learning a signal was being sent to the Quantum Realm, Janet forcibly turned it off, much to everyone's confusion.
==== Exploring in the Quantum Realm ====
: "There are beings down here. Intelligent beings. I always theorized it was possible, but to be here, a subatomic universe. This changes everything we know about life, evolution, our place in the galaxy... Holy shit! That guy looks like broccoli."
: ―Hank Pym[src]
Janet van Dyne went to explain herself, but the Quantum Satellite reactivated and a blue wave of energy was released. A small portal then opened and began to suck in everything in the lab, so the family held on as the portal grew stronger and tried to pull them in. Pym and Janet were sucked into the portal, so their daughter went in after them and grabbed onto them as they fell.
They landed in a jungle-like environment inside of the Quantum Realm, which confused Hank, as he thought they should be dead without a suit on. He looked around at the environment that was nothing like what he had seen when he first entered the Quantum Realm. They were then regrouped with Janet, who hid them from a vehicle scanning the area. They then went to look for Scott and Cassie Lang, and as they walked, they began asking Janet questions, but she snapped at them for not listening to her. They agreed to focus on getting back home, and as they continued onwards, Pym looked around in astonishment, having never known about this part of the Quantum Realm.
The three were found by large group of people, so Janet told them that she would handle it. Pym and Hope watched as Janet walked up to the group's leader and stabbed him. However, they discovered that Janet was friends with the group, and they were provided with transportation and disguises. Pym observed the creature that was intended to be their ride, which made Janet bring up how he rode ants, which he defended by noting that he loved ants. Janet told them that they were going to speak with an old friend of her who would know where Scott and Cassie were.
They rode on a creature that brought them to Axia, a vastly populated city inside of the Quantum Realm. As they walked through the streets, Pym couldn't help but be in awe of everything around him, claiming that it completely changed the way in which he understood things. Janet brought them to a bar filled with different kinds of creatures, and she made Pym and Hope drink an Ooze which allowed them to understand the civilians. As they waited at the bar, Pym asked the bartender to serve him something that would get him drunk.
==== Ambush in Axia ====
: "That guy?""I was done here for 30 years, Henry. I had needs.""Oh, my God.""Look, I get it. I've got needs too."
: ―Hank Pym, Janet van Dyne and Wasp[src]
Janet returned and led them to a table to wait for her contact to arrive. As they went to sit down, Pym heard a signal on his EMP Communication Device. They then witnessed as a ship arrived, and Krylar stepped out of it.
Krylar greeted Pym, having already been told about by Janet, and alluded to his past with Janet being wild, so Pym asked for elaboration, but did not get any. Suddenly, a group of armed soldiers entered the bar, but Krylar ordered them to stand down and let them talk. Krylar then brought up Janet's past in the Quantum Realm, saying that she was full of secrets. Janet begged Krylar to let her family go free, but he didn't allow it, and revealed that a hunter had been sent after Scott and Cassie Lang.
As they were about to be taken away, Hope blasted two of the soldiers, and a fight broke out. Pym managed to get a hold of one of the soldiers weapons, and used it to fight his way to Krylar's ship. Before entering, Pym used an grow disc to enlarge a creature that then attacked Krylar. Onboard the ship, Janet instructed Pym on how to fly it, and as they got away, they talked about their past lovers, with Pym revealing that it never worked out with anyone else because they weren't Janet.
==== Learning about Kang ====
: "I unleashed a monster on this place and ran away.""Janet, you couldn't have known."
: ―Janet van Dyne and Hank Pym[src]
Noticing that Janet van Dyne was still being withholding about her past, they asked what she was so afraid of, so she finally decided to tell them about Kang the Conqueror. Pym learned about how Janet encountered Kang while stranded in the Quantum Realm, and how she realized only after helping him that he was an evil maniac set on destroying timelines. After hearing her story, Pym and Hope van Dyne comforted Janet, and she explained that Kang needed Pym Particles.
==== Theft of the Multiversal Engine Core ====
: "Didn't expect to see your protégé again after all...""Holy shit, Darren. What happened to you?""I am the ultimate weapon!"
: ―M.O.D.O.K. and Hank Pym[src]
They soon came across the enlarged Multiversal Engine Core, which Scott Lang was inside of, so Hope van Dyne went after him. After the Core was shrunk down, Janet van Dyne went to assist Scott and Hope, while Pym stayed in the ship. After hearing the signal again on his EMP Communication Device, Pym was confronted by M.O.D.O.K., who revealed himself to be Darren Cross, much to Pym's shock. M.O.D.O.K. then attacked the ship, causing it to crash.
Pym was found by his smart ants, which had also been sucked into the Quantum Realm and built an entire civilization in the span of a day. Pym and the ants found Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne, and he explained how the ants had been advancing themselves since their arrival, which Pym was incredibly impressed with. They then talked about stopping Kang the Conqueror, which Pym had an idea for, and he quoted Lang's book, which made Lang very happy.
==== Uprising in Axia ====
: "Sorry I'm late. Lotta ants.""Oh, is this you?"
: ―Hank Pym and Ant-Man[src]
Pym, Ant-Man and Wasp flew to the Celestium, where they witnessed Cassie Lang send out a message to everyone in Axia, motivating them to fight back against Kang's Empire. Pym stayed out of the fight, as Ant-Man and Wasp went to off to face off against Kang the Conqueror. Eventually, Pym arrived, leading an army of the advanced ants that overpowered Kang and defeated him.
They then went to M.O.D.O.K.'s side as he died, which they all found uncomfortable. They were then contacted by Janet van Dyne, who informed them that she had found a way to get them all back home, so they rushed to the tower. Pym and Wasp hugged Janet and they all headed into the portal. Pym, van Dyne, Wasp and Cassie all made it through, but Ant-Man did not. They all anxiously waited for him to come through, but Wasp went back through to save him. The portal closed, but Cassie was able to open it up again and they all made it back safely.
==== Back to Normal ====
: "This is good. We're all together."
: ―Scott Lang[src]
Now that their family was reunited and the threat of Kang the Conqueror dealt with, everyone returned to their normal lives. Because they all missed a few years of Cassie Lang growing up due to the Snap, Scott Lang decided to hold a fake birthday party for her at a restaurant with Pym, Janet and Hope van Dyne all attending.
== Personality ==
: "Hank was a terrible partner. Temperamental... stubborn, impatient. Sooner or later, he just pushed everyone away."
: ―Bill Foster[src]
Hank Pym is a multi-faceted man, a passionate scientist who did not wish to see his work fall into the wrong hands. Pym was also a caring father and husband; however, once his wife, Janet van Dyne, sacrificed herself to save the world from a Soviet ICBM, Pym became colder and distant. He sent his daughter Hope off to boarding school in order to protect himself and his young daughter from their loss.
Pym has an aggressive side and a tendency to lash out when provoked. When he was insulted by S.H.I.E.L.D. Head of Defense Mitchell Carson about not being able to protect his wife, Pym smashed Carson's face into the desk to the point where his nose bled and threatened him should he mention his wife ever again. This also happened with Darren Cross when Pym found out about Cross wanting to sell Pym Particles to a terrorist organization. He was willing to destroy Pym Technologies to keep his technology out of the wrong hands, though he showed concern for the people inside and planned for it to be evacuated, despite leaving at least some of Cross' men and knocked out terrorists inside when the building was destroyed. Luis also noted that due to Hank's abrasive and temperamental nature he had frequent fallings out with his friends and colleagues.
Pym is extremely overprotective of his Pym Particles and distrusts anyone who shows interest in them, due to being concerned that the Pym particles would change the nature of warfare and thus the world. During his time at S.H.I.E.L.D., he refused to let anyone use the Ant-Man suit and Pym particles except for himself. He immediately quit S.H.I.E.L.D when he found out they attempted to copy the Pym Particle. When he found out Cross was close to replicating his formula, he immediately plotted to steal Cross' Yellowjacket suit and destroy his own former company to prevent Pym Particles from being sold. Pym even fired Bill Foster for attempting to steal his work and also Elihas Starr for the same reason during his time at S.H.I.E.L.D. According to Foster, Pym had much of an ego during his career. Pym also has a habit of pushing everyone away because he's so cynical. He even cut ties with Lang when he accidentally made them fugitives for helping Captain America.
This distrust seems to be even higher towards the Stark family, as Howard Stark had been experimenting with Pym Particles. When Scott Lang asked to bring in the Avengers to help with Cross; Pym replied that he had spent much of his early life keeping Pym Particles out of the hands of Howard Stark and he would not let it fall into the hands of Stark's son Tony. Despite his disdain towards the Stark family, he still attended Tony Stark's funeral.
== Powers and Abilities ==
=== Powers ===
: "I use electromagnetic waves to stimulate their olfactory nerve center. I speak to them. I can go anywhere, hear anything, and see everything."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
* EMP Communication Device Capabilities: Although he possesses no innate superhuman abilities, Pym is able to use an EMP Communication Device to communicate and control various species of ants.
** Insect Manipulation: Pym can communicate with ants, allowing him a rudimentary form of control over the insects. He uses electromagnetic waves to stimulate their olfactory nerve center and to mimic the pheromones of insect sized organisms using the EMP Communication Device. He could effectively project his will into ants and other insects, which influence their actions and behavior. As of now, he uses the device in the form earpieces similar to hearing aids or coiled communication earpieces. Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne also have these earpieces.
=== Former Powers ===
: "He just kicked your ass full-size, you really wanna find out what it's like when you can't see him coming?"
: ―Howard Stark to Mitchell Carson[src]
* Ant-Man Suit Capabilities: Hank Pym developed the Pym Particles which allowed him to reduce himself in size and also enlarge himself back to normal. He then created a suit to wear that allowed him to use this ability with a click of a button.
** Size Manipulation: Using his developed technology, Pym was able to reduce himself to approximately the size of an ant. He still maintained his regular sized strength and durability while in a reduced scale as the process amplifies the amount of force he can generate and increases his density. Additionally, the process of altering size compresses force and energy, manifesting as brief shockwaves of vibration around the target, which briefly augments his force and momentum as he returns to normal size.
*** Superhuman Strength: The process of size alteration grants him superhuman strength, which allowed him to defeat opponents. He could also leap vast distances and great heights.
*** Superhuman Durability: The process of size alteration grants him superhuman durability, enough to survive falls from great heights and other impacts that would injure or kill even normal sized humans.
** Energy Blast: Pym could emit energy blasts from his wrist. He used this to try to disarm a Russian missile, however the metal was too thick and he wasn't able to.
=== Abilities ===
: "Dr. Pym, you're the smartest genius I know."
: ―Luis to Hank Pym[src]
* Genius-Level Intellect: Hank Pym is one of the smartest humans in the world, a scientist who focused on the development of a technology that other scientists were unable to replicate, such as discovering size-shifting Pym Particles. This intellect granted him a spot in S.H.I.E.L.D., however, he never shared his formula with any of them.
: "The Pym Particle is the most revolutionary science ever developed."
: ―Howard Stark to Hank Pym[src]
* Master Scientist: One of the most brilliant scientific geniuses in history, Pym has tremendous knowledge and unmatched understanding in several fields of science, particularly entomology and atomic physics, but also chemistry. Indeed, he was considered the world's foremost entomology and nanotechnology expert and, was once recruited by Howard Stark and Peggy Carter as a consultant for S.H.I.E.L.D., in addition to him later also advancing the fields of nanotechnology, human enhancements, as well as molecular and atomic studies with his company Pym Technologies. Hence, Pym was able to discover and isolate the extremely rare inter-dimensional Pym Particles, as well as personally go on to harness them. Indeed, S.H.I.E.L.D. were unsuccessful in their covert attempt to replicate Pym's work, and even Pym's protégé Darren Cross, a genius himself, took several years of trial and error to replicate it, and even then failed to realize the negative effects of using the formula without specialized protection.
: "You must retrieve this prototype of a signal decoy. It's a device that I invented during my S.H.I.E.L.D. days."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
* Master Engineer: Pym is a brilliant engineer, especially in the field of nanotechnology, having personally created the Pym Particle-harnessing Ant-Man Suit, as well as the EMP Communication Device. Pym later worked with Scott Lang to render the suit capable of also increasing in size, and they were ultimately successful. He communicated with his ants in order to construct a big and small size of the Quantum Tunnel as well as constructing a Quantum Realm Exploration Suit in order to find his wife.
: "We all know Dr. Pym is a legend in the tech community."
: ―James Rondell to Darren Cross[src]
* Expert Businessman: Pym is a highly trained businessman, having founded his own research company, Pym Technologies, which earned him a distinguished reputation in the technology community.
: "For decades, I was sent around the world on covert operations. I was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s greatest asset."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
* Expert Combatant: As a trained United States Army soldier and a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Pym is a capable fighter, even at his old age. While operating as the Ant-Man, he used his compressed superhuman strength to his advantage against trained soldiers. In one swift move, Pym broke Mitchell Carson's nose with his own desk, and in a surprise attack punched Darren Cross in the face, surprising the latter with his strength.
* Expert Marksman: Pym had excellent aim, as he could throw his Pym Particle Discs with precision. Additionally, during his time in the military he was trained in firearms; he could even use weapons foreign to him, as he readily picked up and used a blaster in the Quantum Realm.
== Equipment ==
=== Other Equipment ===
: "This is not some cute technology like the Iron Man suit. This could change the texture of reality."
: ―Hank Pym to Scott Lang[src]
* Ant-Man Suit: Created by Hank Pym, the Ant-Man Suit is a suit that maximizes the use of the Pym Particles while also protecting the wearer from the negative side-effects of using Pym Particles.
* Pym Particles: Pym Particles are subatomic particles that are capable of shunting or adding mass and reducing or increasing scale of any form of matter, compressing physical forces around such objects or organisms that they are applied to, as well as increasing density and strength of the subject. Pym created and harnessed the Pym Particles in an intelligence organization called S.H.I.E.L.D..
* EMP Communication Device: Pym created a communication device through many rigorous tests to ensure its functionality. It appeared to work perfectly with all ants except for bullet ants, who seemed to ignore all the orders he had given to them. He eventually used it for his Ant-Man Suit to shrink down and talk to the ants on their level. They still continued to be defiant and chased him around until they ran into a centipede that attacked them. Pym and the bullet ants even worked together to defeat the centipede.
* Pym Particle Discs: Pym created a complementary weapons technology for Scott Lang. When thrown, the discs release their Pym Particles upon impact with the target, triggering one of two effects depending on the type of disc used. The red disk shrinks an object or being. The blue disk enlarges any target, Pym uses these disks on a small tank.
* Quantum Tunnel: Whilst on the run from the government, Pym and his daughter Hope van Dyne created a device that could safely transport matter in and out of the Quantum Realm. Pym himself uses this technology to transport the Quantum Vehicle, to save his wife Janet.
* Quantum Vehicle: Used in conjunction with the Quantum Tunnel, the Quantum Vehicle allows the user to traverse the Quantum Realm with ease. Pym uses this technology to travel to Janet's location. The Quantum Vehicle uses tri-engines and is equipped with a location device and also infused with Pym Particles. It moves and controls much like an airplane, using a control stick.
* Quantum Realm Exploration Suit: This suit allows Pym to safely traverse the Quantum Realm outside of the Quantum Vehicle. It mirrors his Ant-Man Suit design, however, lacks any self-shrinking capability. Pym uses it to save his wife; however, he removes the helmet, exposing himself to Quantum Energy, showing how vital the suit is when visiting the Quantum Realm.
=== Vehicles ===
* Shrunken Tank: Pym carried around a small tank on his keychain, which he used to escape Pym Technologies Headquarters.
* Quantum Vehicle: Pym built a vehicle to enter the Quantum Realm and brought it to rescue Janet van Dyne. He retrieved van Dyne and drove it back to Earth.
== Facilities ==
* Pym Residence: Pym lived in a house in San Francisco, where he had Emily as his housekeeper. He set up a heist of the house to test Scott Lang's abilities. He trained Lang in his home to use the Ant-Man Suit.
* Camp Lehigh: Pym spent time training in Camp Lehigh preparing his Ant-Man Suit and working for S.H.I.E.L.D..
* Triskelion: While working for S.H.I.E.L.D., Pym operated in the Triskelion. He entered the Triskelion and scolded S.H.I.E.L.D.'s higher ups for attempting to recreate Pym Particles.
* Pym Technologies Headquarters: Pym ran Pym Technologies out of its headquarters, until it was taken over by Darren Cross. He later broke back into the facility to make sure that Cross could not sell the Yellowjacket Suit.
* Mobile Laboratory: Pym used a mobile laboratory to build a Quantum Tunnel, hoping to rescue Janet van Dyne from the Quantum Realm. The laboratory was stolen, but Pym, Hope van Dyne, and Scott Lang managed to get it back and rescued van Dyne.
* X-Con Security Consultants Office: Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne went to X-Con Security Consultants' office with Scott Lang to figure out how to deal with the theft of his Mobile Laboratory. Pym figured out that they could ask for help from Bill Foster.
* University of California, Berkeley: Pym went to University of California, Berkeley to talk to Bill Foster about how to track his Mobile Laboratory.
=== Prisons ===
* Ghost's Hideout: Pym was captured and brought to Ghost's hideout, where Bill Foster revealed himself to be working with Ghost to keep her safe. Pym managed to escape by tricking Foster into releasing giant ants.
* San Francisco FBI Office: Pym was arrested and brought into the FBI's office with Hope van Dyne. They were about to escape by shrinking a wall, until Scott Lang helped them escape discreetly.
== Relationships ==
=== Family ===
* Janet van Dyne - Wife
* Hope van Dyne/Wasp - Daughter
=== Allies ===
* United States Army
* S.H.I.E.L.D. (First Incarnation)
** Howard Stark † - Former Colleague
** Peggy Carter † - Former Colleague
* Rose
* Erik Selvig - Friend and Former Colleague
* Ants
** Ant-thony †
** Scott Lang's Replacement Ant
* Bill Foster - Former Colleague, Friend and Temporary Enemy
* Linda - Former Lover
* Pym Technologies
** Frank †
* Emily - Housekeeper
* Darren Cross/Yellowjacket † - Former Pupil and Attempted Killer
* George Tarleton/M.O.D.O.K. † - Former Pupil and Former Attempted Killer
* Scott Lang/Ant-Man - Pupil and Successor
* X-Con Security Consultants
** Luis
** Kurt Goreshter
** Dave
* Ava Starr/Ghost - Former Enemy
* Avengers
** Bruce Banner/Hulk - Resurrector
* Cassie Lang/Stature
* Broccoli Man
* Freedom Fighters
** Jentorra
** Quaz
** Veb
** Derrick
** Furry Face	
=== Enemies ===
* Castillo
* Soviet Armed Forces
* Elihas Starr † - Former Colleague
* HYDRA
** Mitchell Carson - Former Colleague
** HYDRA Buyer †
* San Francisco Police Department - Situational Enemies
** Jim Paxton
** Gale
* Sonny Burch
* Uzman
* Anitolov
* FBI - Situational Enemies
** Jimmy Woo
** Stoltz †
** Burleigh
* Thanos † - Killer
* Kang's Empire
** Nathaniel Richards/Kang the Conqueror
** Krylar - Attempted Victim
** Quantumnauts
== Trivia ==
* In the comics, Hank Pym was one of the founding members of the Avengers, and the creator of Ultron. Later, he became known as Yellowjacket before he passed Ant-Man mantle to Scott Lang.
** In later comics, Pym became a member of the Illuminati, a group made of the smartest and most powerful characters in the Marvel Universe, including Black Bolt, Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Medusa, Stephen Strange, and T'Challa.
== Behind the Scenes ==
* Originally, Hank Pym was mentioned by name in Thor when Erik Selvig tells Jane Foster about his contacts in S.H.I.E.L.D. This was cut because the filmmakers thought that it was too soon to mention him.
* Nathan Fillion was in the running to play Pym before it was decided the character would not appear in The Avengers and never auditioned.
* Before Michael Douglas was cast as Hank Pym, Sean Bean, Pierce Brosnan and Gary Oldman were considered for the part.
* Michael Douglas' appearance in Wall Street was the primary reference for Hank Pym's youthful appearance in flashbacks.
* While developing the story of Avengers: Endgame, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely considered having Hank and Janet van Dyne appearing with their Ant-Man Suits during the Battle of Earth sequence, but they ultimately scrapped them from the battle to not make it a "character orgy".
* Michael Runyard and Martin Vose were stunt doubles for Michael Douglas in the role of Hank Pym.
== References ==
The Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki has a collection of images and media related to Hank Pym.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki has a collection of quotes related to Hank Pym.
# ↑ Jump up to:1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 Ant-Man
# ↑ Avengers: Infinity War
# ↑ "4/30/2018" on Scott's laptop in Ant-Man and the Wasp
# ↑ Marvel Studios' The Marvel Cinematic Universe: An Official Timeline
# ↑ Jump up to:5.0 5.1 Ant-Man - Deleted Scene
# ↑ Ant-Man: Larger Than Life
# ↑ Jump up to:7.0 7.1 Avengers: Endgame
# ↑ Jump up to:8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 Ant-Man and the Wasp
# ↑ Ant-Man and the Wasp - Deleted Scene
# ↑ Ant-Man Prelude
# ↑ Jump up to:11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 11.7 Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
# ↑ Jump up to:12.0 12.1 Captain America: Civil War
# ↑ Look Out for the Little Guy!
# ↑ WHiH Newsfront: 1.04: WIRED Insider Interviews Darren Cross, CEO of Pym Technologies
# ↑ A Bug’s Wife: Ant-Man and the Wasp
# ↑ ‘Avengers: Endgame’: The Screenwriters Answer Every Question You Might Have
== External Links ==
* Hank Pym on Marvel Database
* Hank Pym on Wikipedia
* Hank Pym on Marvel Website