David Jones: Marvel Tribute At The End of Ant-Man?

David Jones might not be a popular name in the Hollywood industry, but he is responsible for crafting and illustrating his creative knack for visual effects on the screen, leaving the audience awestruck.

The year 2023 had many superhero films lined up, showcasing and delivering the highly anticipated sequels and the conclusion of the story arcs. Phase 5 of Marvel Cinematic Universe kicked off with a bang, releasing the highly anticipated sequel to Ant-Man, starring the iconic Paul Rudd and Evagenline Lilly.

However, on the contrary, all the moviegoers, comic-book geeks, and fans who were stuck up in the theater and tied to their seats to enjoy Marvel’s Post-Credits were a bit stunned and left curious about the surprising tribute to a certain identity named David Jones that popped up on the screen when the credits rolled up at the end of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Even more surprisingly, he is not part of the cast, and in no way he is associated with the film.

So Who is Marvel’s David Jones? 

According to Variety, Marvel’s David Jones was best known for crafting visually stunning images and for his contributions as a visual effects supervisor. One of his notable contributions and widely known for his best work for visual effect was as a model builder and illustrator on the original Star Wars in 1977.

Born in Sacramento, California, he spent most of his childhood on the air bases located in several far-away areas, such as Anchorage, Alaska, and Freeburg. Subsequently, he earned his degree in industrial design from California State University, Long Beach.

Over the span of David’s 30-year illustrious career, he has been an integral part of the entertainment industry. Best known for his contributions to the original Star Wars, he raised the standards and helped the new generation of countless visual artists by inspiring them for years to come.

After he graduated, David started to work as an illustrator, model maker, and model shop supervisor. He was associated with some notable studios, such as Industrial Light & Magic, Universal Heartland, and Boss Film Studios.

The Sets of Star Wars: An Insight Into David Jones Contribution

While filming Star Wars, George Lucas’ team had an insurmountable task to overcome, and that was to invent and integrate new technology in order to bring the space sequences to life. A rough cut of Star Wars was so disastrous that the entire movie had to be reworked along with the changes in VFX, which was supervised by David Jones.

David Jones and his team worked tirelessly day and night to complete the production as the time was running out and it was almost certain that Star Wars would be a box office disaster.

Nonetheless, David Jones, with all his brilliance and extraordinary talent, crafted some of the visually stunning and appealing scenes blended with fluid storytelling and infused with seamless integrations of live action space sequences, earning the film the Best Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.

In the year of Star Wars, David Jones also worked on another sci-fi project with the legendary director Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The sci-fi genre film was also nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Visual Effects category. Jones was involved in the imagery and sequences that are remembered to this day.

Jones continued to work further by bringing in his innovative techniques in a variety of genres. He helped in bringing real actions to life. In the 1990s, he oversaw the VFX productions for Alien 3, Batman Returns, Sylvester Stallone’s Cliffhanger, and the underrated masterpiece Starship Troopers.

May The Force Be With You, David Jones

Though David wasn’t directly involved in the making of Ant-Man and the Wasp and didn’t have any relations with Marvel Cinematic Studios, it is apparent that Disney might have used their latest theatrical installation to honor the industry veteran and decided to pay their respects and tributes to him. An icon behind the scenes who inspired generations of visual artists, including those who worked on the stunning visual effect for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Tragically, David passed away at the age of 74 due to cancer in the year 2022, as reported by Variety.