Antz#Critical response

Anxious worker ant Z is suffering an existential crisis because everyone in the colony, including his psychiatrist, reminds him of his insignificance. At the same time, the colony's princess, Bala, is wanting to escape her suffocating royal life. While the worker ants are building a giant "Mega Tunnel" within the ant hill, the leader of the colony's army, General Mandible - who Bala is betrothed to - has declared war on an encroaching termite colony. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Mandible is sending only soldiers loyal to the colony's Queen on a suicide mission to engage the termites, in order to stage a coup d'état.

One night, Z hears about a legendary insect paradise, “Insectopia”, from a soldier called Grebs at a bar which Bala visits. While there, she shares a dance with Z, who becomes smitten with her. Wanting to see Bala again, Z persuades his best friend, a soldier called Weaver, to exchange places with him for the army's royal inspection. The next day Z joins the army corps, where he befriends staff sergeant Barbatus; meanwhile Weaver joins the digging crew, striking up a relationship with Z's co-worker, Azteca. Z is sent out with a platoon into battle, where the ants are overwhelmed by the termites and all except Z are killed. Afterwards, Z finds a dying Barbatus on the battlefield, who tells him to think for himself instead of blindly following orders before dying.

Z returns home, where he is mistakenly hailed as a war hero and is granted an audience with the Queen. Bala recognizes Z as a worker and Mandible orders him arrested. This prompts Z to panic and pretend to take Bala hostage as he escapes the ant hill with her. Z's act of individuality inspires the workers and some soldier ants, halting productivity, but Mandible regains their loyalty by portraying Z as a self-centered war criminal, promoting the glory of conformity, and promising the workers rewards for completing the Mega Tunnel. However, Mandible's second-in-command, a flying ant named Cutter, begins to doubt Mandible's constant reassurances that he is acting for the good of the colony.

Z and Bala go in search of Insectopia, initially mistaking a human picnic for it, but are told otherwise by Muffy and Chip, a middle class couple of wasps. They then escape a human who kills Muffy with a fly swatter. Having survived, Z and Bala at last find Insectopia, revealed to be a trash can overfilled with decaying food. After interrogating Weaver, Mandible learns that Z is searching for Insectopia and sends Cutter to find it. That night, Cutter arrives at Insectopia and forcibly flies Bala back to the colony. Seeing Z's desperation at Bala's abduction, a drunken Chip, mourning Muffy's death, flies Z back to the colony. Z rescues Bala and together they discover that the Mega Tunnel will flood upon completion and that Mandible intends to drown the Queen, along with the workers, and restart the colony with Bala as his queen.

Bala goes to save the Queen while Z attempts to stop work on the tunnel. But the foreman refuses to listen and it begins to flood. Z and Bala unify the queen and workers, convincing them to build a ladder towards the surface as the water rises. Meanwhile, Mandible gathers the soldiers on the surface and gloats about creating a new, stronger colony. When the ants break through the surface, Cutter, who has come to reject Mandible’s dismissal of the workers’ potential, betrays him and attempts to help Z. Enraged, Mandible tries to attack Cutter, but Z intervenes, causing him and Mandible to fall into the flooded tunnel. Mandible perishes upon landing on a root and Z nearly drowns, but is rescued by Cutter and resuscitated by Bala. Z is praised for his heroism, and he and Bala become a couple. Together, they rebuild the colony, and Z narrates that he is finally content with his place in the world. The camera then zooms out to show the anthill is in Central Park in New York City.

{{div col|colwidth=26em}}

• Woody Allen as Z Marion-4195 "Z", an idealistic, but anxious worker ant.
• Gene Hackman as General Mandible, the sarcastic, unscrupulous and arrogant general officer of the ant military and Bala's fiance.
• Sharon Stone as Princess Bala, the future Queen of the colony and Mandible's fiancée.
• Sylvester Stallone as Corporal Weaver, a brave soldier ant and Z's best friend who becomes Azteca's boyfriend.
• Jennifer Lopez as Azteca, another friend of Z's and a worker ant who becomes Weaver's girlfriend.
• Christopher Walken as Colonel Cutter, a flying ant who serves as Mandible's patient and empathetic adviser who becomes disillusioned by the general's actions.
• Danny Glover as Staff Sergeant Barbatus, a soldier ant who befriends Z during the fight against the termites.
• Anne Bancroft as the Queen Ant, Bala's mother and the ruler of the ants.
• Dan Aykroyd as Chip, a wasp whom Z befriends.
• Grant Shaud as the Foreman, the head of the worker ants.
• John Mahoney as Grebs, a drunk ant scout who talked about Insectopia.
• Jane Curtin as Muffin "Muffy" the Wasp, Chip's wife.
• Paul Mazursky as Z's Psychiatrist.
• Jerry Sroka as the Bartender, the unnamed bartender of the bar that Z and Weaver frequent.
• Jim Cummings and April Winchell as additional voices

{{div col end}}

The cast features several actors from films Allen wrote, starred in and directed, including Stone (Stardust Memories), Stallone (Bananas), Hackman (Another Woman), and Walken (Annie Hall). Aykroyd later co-starred in Allen's The Curse of the Jade Scorpion.

In 1988, Walt Disney Feature Animation pitched a film called Army Ants, about a pacifist worker ant teaching lessons of independent thinking to his militaristic colony.{{cite news|last1=Burrows|first1=Peter|url=http://www.businessweek.com/1998/47/b3605013.htm|title=Antz vs. Bugs: The Inside Story of How Dreamworks Beat Pixar to the Screen |work=Business Week |date=November 12, 1998 |access-date=September 3, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19991128083348/http://www.businessweek.com/1998/47/b3605013.htm |archive-date=November 28, 1999}} Years later, Jeffrey Katzenberg, then chairman of Disney's film division, had left the company in a feud with CEO Michael Eisner over the vacant president position after the death of Frank Wells. Katzenberg would later go on to help co-found DreamWorks with Steven Spielberg and David Geffen, and the three planned to rival Disney with the company's new animation division.{{cite book|last=Isaacson|first=Walter|title=Steve Jobs|publisher=Simon & Schuster|location=New York|year=2011|page=[https://archive.org/details/stevejobs00isaa/page/307 307]|isbn=978-1-4516-4853-9}} At the newly-founded studio, Katzenberg began developing projects he tried to pursue or suggested while at Disney, including The Prince of Egypt, a collaboration with Aardman Animations which resulted in Chicken Run, Sinbad, and Army Ants. Also many ideas for the film were borrowed from a scrapped PDI film pitch for a computer-animated film from 1991 called Bugs: Lights Out about microscopic robots that take apart machinery.{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgsVAht_tLk&t=182s |title=YouTubeInterview with PDI founder Carl Rosendahl Part 1 |website=YouTube |date=February 24, 2022 |access-date=November 23, 2022 |archive-date=November 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221105015435/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgsVAht_tLk&t=182s |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgsVAht_tLk |title=YouTube Interview with PDI founder Carl Rosendahl Part 2 |website=YouTube |date=February 24, 2022 |access-date=November 23, 2022 |archive-date=November 12, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221112190633/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgsVAht_tLk |url-status=live }}

Production began in May 1996, after production had already commenced on The Prince of Egypt. DreamWorks had contracted Pacific Data Images (PDI) in Palo Alto, California to begin working on computer-animated films to rival Pixar's features.{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/antz/ |title=Antz |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=September 3, 2016 |archive-date=October 30, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161030075116/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/antz/ |url-status=live }} Woody Allen was cast in the lead role of Z. Allen made some uncredited rewrites to the script, to make the dialogue better fit his style of comedic timing.{{Cite web|date=2018-11-23|title=Antz vs. A Bug's Life, 20 Years Later|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/antz-vs-a-bug-s-life-20-years-later/|access-date=2020-08-07|website=Den of Geek|language=en-US|archive-date=August 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803204421/https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/antz-vs-a-bug-s-life-20-years-later/|url-status=live}} Sarah Jessica Parker was originally cast as Princess Bala and even recorded some lines, until she was fired, she was replaced by Sharon Stone.{{Cite web|url=https://ew.com/article/2016/10/18/sarah-jessica-parker-fired-two-animated-movies/|title=Sarah Jessica Parker says she was fired from Antz, Home on the Range|author-first1=Oliver|author-last1=Gettell|date=27 September 2019|work=Entertainment Weekly}} An altered line from one of his early directed films, Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) was included – "I was going to include you in my most erotic fantasies..."

During the production of A Bug's Life, a public feud erupted between DreamWorks Animation's Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Pixar's Steve Jobs and John Lasseter. Katzenberg, former chairman of Disney's film division, had left Disney in a feud with CEO Michael Eisner. In response, he formed DreamWorks SKG with Steven Spielberg and David Geffen and planned to rival Disney in animation. After DreamWorks' acquisition of Pacific Data Images (PDI)—long Pixar's contemporary in computer animation—Lasseter and others at Pixar were dismayed to learn from the trade papers that PDI's first project at DreamWorks would be another ant film, to be called Antz.Price, p. 170 By this time, Pixar's project was well known within the animation community.Price, p. 171 Both Antz and A Bug's Life center on a young male ant, a drone with oddball tendencies that struggles to win a princess's hand by saving their society. Whereas A Bug's Life relied chiefly on visual gags, Antz was more verbal and revolved more around satire. The script of Antz was also heavy with adult references, whereas Pixar's film was more accessible to children.

Lasseter and Jobs believed that the idea was stolen by Katzenberg.{{cite web |url=http://www.businessweek.com/1998/47/b3605013.htm |title=Antz vs. Bugs |work=Business Week |date=November 23, 1998 |accessdate=February 10, 2011 |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5wO3xwVQF?url=http://www.businessweek.com/1998/47/b3605013.htm |archivedate=February 10, 2011 |first=Peter |last=Burrows}} Katzenberg had stayed in touch with Lasseter after the acrimonious Disney split, often calling to check up. In October 1995, when Lasseter was overseeing postproduction work on Toy Story at the Universal Studios Lot's Technicolor facility in Universal City, where DreamWorks was also located, he called Katzenberg and dropped by with Andrew Stanton. When Katzenberg asked what they were doing next, Lasseter described what would become A Bug's Life in detail. Lasseter respected Katzenberg's judgment and felt comfortable using him as a sounding board for creative ideas.Price, p. 169 Lasseter had high hopes for Toy Story, and he was telling friends throughout the tight-knit computer-animation business to get cracking on their own films. He told various friends, "If this hits, it's going to be like space movies after Star Wars" for computer animation companies. Lasseter later recalled, "I should have been wary. Jeffrey kept asking questions about when it would be released."

When the trades indicated production on Antz, Lasseter, feeling betrayed, called Katzenberg and asked him if it was true, who in turn asked him where he had heard the rumor. Lasseter asked again, and Katzenberg admitted it was true. Lasseter raised his voice and would not believe Katzenberg's story that a development director had pitched him the idea long ago. Katzenberg claimed Antz came from a 1991 story pitch by Tim Johnson that was related to Katzenberg in October 1994. Another source gives Nina Jacobson, one of Katzenberg's executives, as the person responsible for the Antz pitch. Lasseter, who normally did not use profane language, cursed at Katzenberg and hung up the phone.{{cite book | last = Isaacson | first = Walter | title = Steve Jobs | publisher = Simon & Schuster | location = New York | year = 2011 | page = [https://archive.org/details/stevejobs00isaa/page/308 308] | isbn = 978-1-4516-4853-9 }} Lasseter recalled that Katzenberg began explaining that Disney was "out to get him" and Lasseter felt that he was cannon fodder in Katzenberg's fight with Disney. For his part, Katzenberg believed he was the victim of a conspiracy: Eisner had decided not to pay him his contract-required bonus, convincing Disney's board not to give him anything. Katzenberg was further angered by the fact that Eisner scheduled Bugs to open the same week as The Prince of Egypt, which was then intended to be DreamWorks' first animated release. Lasseter relayed the news to Pixar employees but kept morale high. Privately, Lasseter told other Pixar executives that he and Stanton felt let down by Katzenberg.

Katzenberg moved the opening of Antz from Spring 1999 to October 1998 to compete with Pixar's release. David Price writes in his 2008 book The Pixar Touch that a rumor, "never confirmed", was that Katzenberg had given PDI "rich financial incentives to induce them to whatever it would take to have Antz ready first, despite Pixar's head start". Jobs was furious and called Katzenberg and began yelling. Katzenberg made an offer: He would delay production of Antz if Jobs and Disney would move A Bug's Life so that it did not compete with The Prince of Egypt. Jobs believed it "a blatant extortion attempt" and would not go for it, explaining that there was nothing he could do to convince Disney to change the date. Katzenberg responded that Jobs had taught him how to conduct similar business long ago, explaining that Jobs had come to Pixar's rescue by making the deal for Toy Story, as Pixar was near bankruptcy at that time. Katzenberg said, "I was the one guy there for you back then, and now you're allowing them to use you to screw me." He suggested that if Jobs wanted to, he could slow down production on A Bug's Life without telling Disney. If he did, Katzenberg said, he would put Antz on hold. Lasseter also claimed Katzenberg had phoned him with the proposition, but Katzenberg denied these charges later.Price, p. 172

As the release dates for both films approached, Disney executives concluded that Pixar should keep silent on the DreamWorks battle. Regardless, Lasseter publicly dismissed Antz as a "schlock version" of A Bug's Life. Lasseter, who claimed to have never seen Antz, told others that if DreamWorks and PDI had made the film about anything other than insects, he would have closed Pixar for the day so the entire company could go see it.Price, p. 174 Jobs and Katzenberg would not back down and the rivaling ant films provoked a press frenzy. "The bad guys rarely win," Jobs told the Los Angeles Times. In response, DreamWorks' head of marketing Terry Press stated, "Steve Jobs should take a pill." Despite the successful box office performances of both films, tensions would remain high between Jobs and Katzenberg for many years. According to Jobs, Katzenberg came to Jobs after the success of Shrek (2001) and insisted he had never heard the pitch for A Bug's Life, reasoning that his settlement with Disney would have given him a share of the profits if that were so. Although the contention left all parties estranged, Pixar and PDI employees kept up the old friendships that had arisen from spending a long time together in computer animation.

At the time, the current Disney studio executives were starting a bitter competitive rivalry with Jeffrey Katzenberg and his new DreamWorks films. In 1995, Katzenberg announced The Prince of Egypt to debut in November 1998 as DreamWorks' first animated release. A year later, Disney scheduled Bugs to open on the same weekend, which infuriated Katzenberg. Katzenberg invited Disney executives to DreamWorks to negotiate a release date change for Bugs, but the company refused to budge. DreamWorks pushed Prince of Egypt to the Christmas season and the studio had decided not to begin full marketing for Antz until after Prince of Egypt was released.{{cite web|url=https://www.aintitcool.com/node/704|title=Tons of ANIMATION news!!!|publisher=Ain't it Cool News|access-date=September 3, 2016|archive-date=August 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806185121/http://www.aintitcool.com/node/704|url-status=live}} Disney afterward announced release dates for films that were going to compete with The Prince of Egypt, and both studios had to compete with Paramount Pictures, which was releasing The Rugrats Movie in November, based on Nickelodeon's animated series Rugrats. Katzenberg suddenly moved the opening of Antz from March 1999 to October 1998, in order to successfully beat A Bug's Life into cinemas.{{cite web|url=https://www.aintitcool.com/node/1150|title=Antz (and Schedule History)|publisher=Ain't it Cool News|access-date=September 3, 2016|archive-date=August 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806195639/http://www.aintitcool.com/node/1150|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=http://laprensa-sandiego.org/archieve/october02/ants.htm|title=Of Ants, Bugs, and Rug Rats: The Story of Dueling Bug Movies|agency=AP|date=October 2, 1998|access-date=March 4, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303172821/http://laprensa-sandiego.org/archieve/october02/ants.htm|archive-date=March 3, 2016|url-status=dead}}

David Price writes in his 2008 book The Pixar Touch that a rumor, "never confirmed", was that Katzenberg had given PDI "rich financial incentives to induce them to whatever it would take to have Antz ready first, despite Pixar's head start". Jobs furiously called Katzenberg to explain that there was nothing he could do to convince Disney to change the date. Katzenberg said to him that Jobs himself had taught him how to conduct similar business long ago, explaining that Jobs had come to Pixar's rescue from near bankruptcy by making the deal for Toy Story with Disney.Price, p. 163 He told Jobs that he had enough power with Disney to convince them to change specific plans on their films. Lasseter also claimed Katzenberg had phoned him with a final proposition to delay Antz if Disney and Pixar changed the date of A Bug's Life, but Katzenberg denied this.Price, p. 172 Jobs believed it was "a blatant extortion attempt".{{cite book|last=Isaacson|first=Walter|title=Steve Jobs|publisher=Simon & Schuster|location=New York|year=2011|page=[https://archive.org/details/stevejobs00isaa/page/428 428]|isbn=978-1-4516-4853-9}}

As the release dates for both films approached, Disney executives concluded that Pixar should keep quiet on Antz and the feud concerning DreamWorks. Regardless, Lasseter publicly dismissed Antz as a "schlock version" of A Bug's Life;Price, p. 173 however, Lasseter later admitted that he never saw the film. Lasseter claimed that if DreamWorks and PDI had made the film about anything other than insects, he would have closed Pixar for the day so the entire company could go see it.Price, p. 174 Jobs and Katzenberg would not back down and the rivaling ant films provoked a press frenzy. "The bad guys rarely win," Jobs told the Los Angeles Times. In response, DreamWorks' head of marketing Terry Press suggested, "Steve Jobs should take a pill." Tensions would remain high between Jobs and Katzenberg for many years after the release of both films. According to Jobs, years later, Katzenberg approached him after the opening of Shrek, and insisted that he had never heard the pitch for A Bug's Life, reasoning that his settlement with Disney would have given him a share of the profits if that were so.{{cite book|last=Isaacson|first=Walter|title=Steve Jobs|publisher=Simon & Schuster|location=New York|year=2011|page=[https://archive.org/details/stevejobs00isaa/page/309 309]|isbn=978-1-4516-4853-9}} In the end, Pixar and PDI employees kept up the old friendships that had arisen from working in computer animation for years before feature films.

The final product of both films are generally perceived to contrast one another in tone and certain plot points. Antz in the end seemed to be more geared towards older audiences, featuring moderate violence, mild sexual innuendoes, and profanity, as well as social and political satire. A Bug's Life was more family-friendly and lighthearted in tone and story. The two films especially differ in their artistic look: Antz played off more realistic aspects of ants and how they relate to other bugs, like termites and wasps, while A Bug's Life offered a more fanciful look at insects to better suit its story. PopMatters journalist J.C. Maçek III compared the two films and wrote, "The feud deepened with both teams making accusations and excuses and a release date war ensued. While Antz beat A Bug's Life to the big screen by two months, the latter film significantly out grossed its predecessor. Rip off or not, Antz's critical response has proven to be almost exactly as positive as what A Bug's Life has enjoyed."{{cite web|work=PopMatters|title=Instantly Familiar: Hollywood's Great Duopolies|date=February 14, 2014|first=J.C.|last=Maçek III|url=https://www.popmatters.com/column/177531-instantly-familiar-hollywoods-great-duopolies/|access-date=February 21, 2020|archive-date=May 31, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170531120239/http://www.popmatters.com/column/177531-instantly-familiar-hollywoods-great-duopolies/|url-status=live}}

{{Infobox album

| name = Antz: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

| type = film

| artist = Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell

| cover =

| alt =

| released = November 3, 1998

| recorded = 1998

| venue =

| studio =

| genre = Film score

| length = 49:02

| label = Angel Records{{cite web|title=Antz|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/release/antz-mr0001379250/credits|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=September 13, 2015|archive-date=October 30, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161030151644/http://www.allmusic.com/album/release/antz-mr0001379250/credits|url-status=live}}

| producer = Hans Zimmer

| chronology = Harry Gregson-Williams film scores

| prev_title = The Replacement Killers

| prev_year = 1998

| next_title = Enemy of the State

| next_year = 1998

| misc = {{Extra chronology

| artist = John Powell

| type = soundtrack

| prev_title = With Friends Like These...

| prev_year = 1998

| title = Antz

| year = 1998

| next_title = Endurance

| next_year = 1999

}}

}}

The original music for the film was composed by Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell. The soundtrack was released on November 3, 1998 by Angel Records.{{cite news|last1=Jeffries|first1=Neil|title=Antz Soundtrack Review|url=https://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?SID=3802|access-date=September 13, 2015|work=Empire|date=1998|archive-date=March 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200327015736/https://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?SID=3802|url-status=live}}

Initially, Jeffrey Katzenberg wanted Hans Zimmer to compose the music, but he was too busy with The Prince of Egypt among other projects. Instead, Zimmer suggested two composers from his studio — either Harry Gregson-Williams or John Powell — both of whom had already collaborated on Egypt.{{cite news|last1=Freer|first1=Ian|title=Empire Meets John Powell|url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/john-powell-career|access-date=September 13, 2015|work=Empire|date=April 22, 2014|archive-date=October 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018204235/http://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/john-powell-career/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last1=Ciafardini|first1=Marc|title=Exclusive: Interview (Part II)…Film Composer Harry Gregson-Williams Talks Tony Scott, Hans Zimmer and His Career|url=http://goseetalk.com/exclusive-interview-film-composer-harry-gregson-williams-part-ii/|publisher=GoseeTalk|access-date=September 13, 2015|date=June 7, 2013|archive-date=April 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160405161522/http://goseetalk.com/exclusive-interview-film-composer-harry-gregson-williams-part-ii/|url-status=live}}

On December 23, 1997, a teaser trailer for Antz, depicting the opening scene with Z in an ant psychiatrist office, first played in theaters in front of select prints of As Good as It Gets.{{cite web|url=https://www.aintitcool.com/node/403|title=Is the ANTZ trailer playing at a theater near you' Read here to find out!!!|publisher=Ain't it Cool News|access-date=September 3, 2016|archive-date=September 16, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160916045945/http://www.aintitcool.com/node/403|url-status=live}} Anticipation was generally high with adults rather than families and children. Antz premiered at the 1998 Toronto International Film Festival on September 19, 1998, and entered wide release on October 2, 1998.

Antz was released on VHS and DIVX on February 9, 1999, and on DVD on March 23, becoming the first feature-length CGI-animated film to be available on DVD. The original release used a 35mm print of the film, rather than an encoded version from the original files. A special edition version was released on February 14, 2003.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}} The film was released on Blu-ray on October 16, 2018 by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, for the film's 20th anniversary.{{cite web|url=http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Antz-Blu-ray/26239/|title=Antz Blu-ray|work=Blu-ray.com|date=August 26, 2018|access-date=August 27, 2018|archive-date=August 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180828035635/http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Antz-Blu-ray/26239/|url-status=live}}

The film topped the box office in its opening weekend ahead of Rush Hour and What Dreams May Come, earning $17,195,160 for a $7,021 average from 2,449 theatres.{{cite web|title=Antz (1998) – Box Office Mojo|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=antz.htm|access-date=April 22, 2011|archive-date=April 7, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110407064848/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=antz.htm|url-status=live}} It surpassed Stargate to have the highest October opening weekend.{{cite web|url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1998/10/05/animated-antz-crawls-to-top-in-box-office-debut/|title=Animated "Antz' crawls to top in box office debut|access-date=August 25, 2022|archive-date=August 25, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220825161330/https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1998/10/05/animated-antz-crawls-to-top-in-box-office-debut/|url-status=live}} This record would last for two years until it was beaten by Meet the Parents in 2000.{{cite magazine|last=Reese|first=Lori|title=Meet the Parents tops the box office|url=https://ew.com/article/2000/10/08/meet-parents-tops-box-office/|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=September 22, 2022|date=October 8, 2000|archive-date=September 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220924161320/https://ew.com/article/2000/10/08/meet-parents-tops-box-office/|url-status=live}} In its second weekend, the film held the top spot again, with a slippage of only 14% to $14.7 million for a $5,230 average and expanding to 2,813 sites. It held well also in its third weekend, slipping only 24% to $11.2 million and finishing in third place, for a $3,863 average from 2,903 theatres. The film's widest release was 2,929 theatres, and closed on February 18, 1999. The film altogether picked up $90,757,863 domestically, but failed to outgross the competition with A Bug's Life. The film picked up an additional $81 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $171.8 million.

According to DreamWorks, the film's budget was about $42 million, while the numbers $60 million and $105 million were also reported. According to Los Angeles Times, the first figure was doubted by the film industry, considering that other computer-animated films at the time cost twice that amount, and that the budget did not include start-up costs of PDI.

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 92% based on 91 reviews and an average rating of 7.60/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Featuring a stellar voice cast, technically dazzling animation, and loads of good humor, Antz should delight both children and adults."{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/antz/ |title=Antz |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=February 25, 2025|archive-date=May 19, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100519123203/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/antz/ |url-status=live }} Metacritic gave the film a score of 73 out of 100 based on 26 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/antz|title=Antz|work=Metacritic|access-date=April 29, 2016|archive-date=March 15, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315014447/http://www.metacritic.com/movie/antz|url-status=live}} Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.{{cite web |url= https://cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |title= CinemaScore |work= cinemascore.com |access-date= January 19, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180722041238/https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |archive-date= July 22, 2018 |url-status=dead }}

Roger Ebert praised the film, saying that it is "sharp and funny". The variety of themes, interesting visuals, and voice acting were each aspects of the film that were praised.{{cite web|last1=Ebert|first1=Roger|title=Antz Movie Review & Film Summary|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/antz-1998|publisher=Roger Ebert|access-date=December 27, 2014|date=October 2, 1998|archive-date=December 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227161244/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/antz-1998|url-status=live}} Ebert's partner, Gene Siskel, greatly enjoyed the film and preferred it over A Bug's Life.{{cite news|last1=Siskel|first1=Gene|title='Antz' Distinctive, Delightful|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1998/10/02/antz-distinctive-delightful/|access-date=December 27, 2014|work=Chicago Tribune|date=October 2, 1998|archive-date=December 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227153157/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1998-10-02/entertainment/9810020021_1_antz-star-drone|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Siskel: 'Babe' Is The Best|website=CBS News|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/siskel-babe-is-the-best/|access-date=December 27, 2014|date=December 4, 1998|quote=A Bug's Life is built more for kids than Antz and may not be as entertaining for adults."|archive-date=December 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227151831/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/siskel-babe-is-the-best/|url-status=live}} Siskel later ranked it No. 7 on his picks of the Best Films of 1998.{{cite news|last1=Snow|first1=Shauna|title=Arts And Entertainment Reports From The Times, News Services And The Nation's Press.|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-jan-01-ca-59422-story.html|access-date=August 24, 2015|work=Los Angeles Times|date=January 1, 1999|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150824120429/http://articles.latimes.com/1999/jan/01/entertainment/ca-59422|archive-date=August 24, 2015|quote=Siskel chose the box-office flop "Babe: Pig in the City" as the year's best film, followed by "The Thin Red Line," "Pleasantville," "Saving Private Ryan," "Shakespeare in Love," "The Truman Show," "Antz," "Simon Birch," "There's Something About Mary" and "Waking Ned Devine."|url-status=live}}

A direct-to-video sequel was in development at DreamWorks at the time of the release of Antz. Like the first film, it was planned to be produced by Pacific Data Images, and was also considered for theatrical release.{{cite web|title=DreamWorks is having a picnic; "Antz II" marching on|url=http://www.awn.com/news/dreamworks-having-picnic-antz-ii-marching|publisher=Animation World Network|access-date=August 26, 2015|date=October 12, 2015|archive-date=March 19, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150319050725/http://www.awn.com/news/dreamworks-having-picnic-antz-ii-marching|url-status=live}} By early 1999, when DreamWorks closed its television animation unit and merged the direct-to-video unit with the feature animation, the sequel was still planned, but eventually the project was cancelled.{{cite web|last1=Amidi|first1=Amid |author-link=Amid Amidi|title=DreamWorks TV shuts down|url=http://www.awn.com/news/dreamworks-tv-shuts-down|publisher=Animation World Network|access-date=August 26, 2015|date=March 9, 1999|archive-date=February 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204235348/http://www.awn.com/news/dreamworks-tv-shuts-down|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last1=Teo|first1=Loenard|title=3D Festival interviews Andy Murdock, the artist behind "Lots of Robots"|url=http://www.cgsociety.org/index.php/CGSFeatures/CGSFeatureSpecial/lots_of_robots_interview|publisher=CG Society|access-date=August 26, 2015|date=November 22, 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202032925/http://www.cgsociety.org/index.php/CGSFeatures/CGSFeatureSpecial/lots_of_robots_interview|archive-date=February 2, 2017|url-status=dead}}

• List of films that depict class struggle

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist|refs=

{{cite web|last1=Amidi|first1=Amid |author-link=Amid Amidi|title=Coming soon to a VCR near you|url=http://www.awn.com/news/coming-soon-vcr-near-you|publisher=Animation World Network|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150705072519/http://www.awn.com/news/coming-soon-vcr-near-you|archive-date=July 5, 2015|date=February 4, 1999|quote=DreamWorks will release "Antz" on home video on February 9...|url-status=live}}

{{cite web|title=Studio News – DreamWorks SKG|last1=Hunt|first1=Bill|url=http://www.thedigitalbits.com/site_archive/articles/oldstudionews/dreamworks.html|publisher=The Digital Bits|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130310121151/http://thedigitalbits.com/site_archive/articles/oldstudionews/dreamworks.html|archive-date=March 10, 2013|date=February 8, 1999|url-status=live}}

{{cite web|last1=Hunt|first1=Bill|title=My Two Cents (Archived Posts 2/8/99 – 1/20/99)|url=http://www.thedigitalbits.com/site_archive/mytwocentsa9.html|publisher=The Digital Bits|access-date=August 26, 2015|date=January 22, 1999|quote=...a Divx version of ANTZ is going to be released day-and-date with VHS in early February... I spoke with the studio's DVD production guru today, who assured me that the delay is only due to the added time needed to pack the DVD version with lots of extra material. Look for it to street probably in late March.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130310120425/http://thedigitalbits.com/site_archive/mytwocentsa9.html|archive-date=March 10, 2013|url-status=live}}

{{cite news|last1=King|first1=Susan|title=As DVD Popularity Grows, So Do Extras|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-jul-15-ca-56076-story.html|access-date=August 26, 2015|work=Los Angeles Times|date=July 15, 1999|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150826142603/http://articles.latimes.com/1999/jul/15/entertainment/ca-56076|archive-date=August 26, 2015|url-status=live|quote=Being the very first full-length CGI [computer generated image] animated film ever released on DVD,...}}

{{cite web|last1=Hunt|first1=Bill|title=DVD Review – Antz: Signature Edition|url=http://www.thedigitalbits.com/site_archive/reviews/antz.html|publisher=The Digital Bits|access-date=August 26, 2015|date=March 16, 1999|quote=How much better can a straight-digital transfer of CGI animation be (like that of the forthcoming A Bug's Life), versus a top-flight, telecine film transfer like this one?|archive-date=March 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305010921/http://www.thedigitalbits.com/site_archive/reviews/antz.html|url-status=live}}

{{cite magazine|last1=Daly|first1=Steve|title=A Bug's Life|url=https://www.ew.com/article/1999/04/22/bugs-life|access-date=August 26, 2015|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|date=April 22, 1999|quote=That's a far superior approach than outputting the imagery to movie film and then copying that version onto video. (That's how the computer-animated "Toy Story" and "Antz" were transferred to home-viewing formats – and why they don't look as good as "Bug's Life.")|archive-date=August 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150826171453/http://www.ew.com/article/1999/04/22/bugs-life|url-status=live}}

{{cite news|last1=Fabrikant|first1=Geraldine|title='Prince of Egypt' Is No King at the Box-Office|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/28/business/prince-of-egypt-is-no-king-at-the-box-office.html|access-date=February 25, 2017|work=The New York Times|date=December 28, 1998|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150527084912/http://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/28/business/prince-of-egypt-is-no-king-at-the-box-office.html|archive-date=May 27, 2015|url-status=live}}

{{cite news|last1=Natale|first1=Richard|title=After 'Rush Hour,' Fall's Box-Office Traffic Is Light|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-nov-03-fi-38846-story.html|access-date=February 25, 2017|work=Los Angeles Times|date=November 3, 1998|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151204185432/http://articles.latimes.com/1998/nov/03/business/fi-38846|archive-date=December 4, 2015|url-status=live}}

{{cite book|last1=Barker|first1=Martin|last2=Austin|first2=Thomas|title=From Antz to Titanic: Reinventing Film Analysis|url=https://archive.org/details/fromantztotitani00bark_0|url-access=registration|date=2000|publisher=Pluto Press|location=London|isbn=0-7453-1579-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/fromantztotitani00bark_0/page/72 72]|quote=On a $60 million budget, Antz had to succeed.}}

{{cite news|last1=Feuerstein|first1=Adam|title='Antz' aims for top of the hill|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/1998/08/31/story5.html|access-date=February 25, 2017|work=San Francisco Business Times|date=August 30, 1998|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001218045700/http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/1998/08/31/story5.html|archive-date=December 18, 2000|url-status=live}}}}

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