The cast of Fantastic Four has been long speculated about. For a while, Adam Driver was said to be a shoe-in for the role of Reed Richards. Now, a new report from Daniel Richtman, and reported by Comic Book Movies, says that speculation can now end as the key cast is now locked in with deals in place. An announcement is said to be imminent.
The latest strong rumors centred on Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, with Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/The Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing. Javier Bardem as planet-devouring cosmic character Galactus, and Anya Taylor-Joy as his herald The Silver Surfer were also the subject of fevered speculation.
Trades stated that a deal was already sketched out for Pascal, but the others were seemingly pure speculation or from “insider” leaks. Now it looks like we will know soon enough, one way or another.
Fantastic Four was the first superhero team created by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and editor/co-scripter Stan Lee, and through this title that the “Marvel method” style of production came into prominence. It was often rumored that they were introduced by Marvel as a response to DCs success with the Justice League Of America title. Marvel saw the success of a superhero team-up, so introduced a whole family of heroes.
The release of The Fantastic Four #1 (Nov. 1961) was an unexpected success. Lee had felt ready to leave the comics industry, but its success persuaded him to stay on. The title began to receive fan mail and Lee started printing the letters in a letter column with issue #3. Also with the third issue, Lee created the hyperbolic slogan:
“The Greatest Comic Magazine in the World!!”
This movie adaption will be directed by WandaVision and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters producer Matt Shakman. Production starts in the UK at Pinewood Studios just outside London ahead of a May 2025 release.
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