This past Wednesday Marvel Studios made a very special casting announcement via their social media platforms. It was a gift much sweeter and tasty than any Valentine’s Day candy sampler. And it’s been in the works for nearly five years. That’s when Disney officially purchased Fox Studios, which finally brought one of the most celebrated Marvel Comics (hey, they started the “line”) into the “fold”. In the years before the 2008 launch of Marvel Studios, some of their characters were licensed out to several different studios. Sony still has Spidey, while Daredevil, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four were then at Fox. DD was brought back in with the Netflix series (and a new Disney+ Maxi-series soon), and DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE will rule this July, all the while fans were clamoring for a “new take” on the “first family” of Marvel. Studio head Kevin Feige has teased it at a couple of Comicon appearances, while many filmmakers have been linked to directing the project. Oh, and the casting speculations have filled the internet. Ah, but now this “holiday greeting” makes the acting line-up official.
So let’s dive into the sketch and see what we can glean from the many visual “clues”. Aside from the actors themselves, we get some interesting “tidbits” in the background and the “props”. First, Ben Grimm AKA The Thing is holding a magazine which is a rendition of the LBJ cover of Life Magazine in 1964. And behind Benjy we see him in his “human form” all “suited up” in a big framed photo that resembles one of the official NASA portraits of their Mercury and Apollo crew. These two clues strongly suggest that some or part of the film (perhaps a big majority, much like the 1940s of CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER) is set in the early to middle 1960s. Appropriate as their book was begun in 1961 (more about that a bit later). Perhaps a supervillain (and the FF has a superb rogues gallery) whisked them forward in time (could it be the Quantum Realm at work again). Or is the film set in one of the many alternative worlds, other than the “standard” 616 of the current MCU? Could the FF “cross over” to us to begin another “phase”? We’ve got another year to ponder the possibilities.
And what about their attire? Could this be the new “spin” on the famous blue and white jumpsuits comprised of “unstable molecules”? It’s certainly possible for Reed and Sue on the right side of the art. But there’s a more casual feel to the outfits worn by Ben and Johnny, which fits into the whole “lazy afternoon” vibe lounging on the retro-style furniture. Oh, and I’ve got to mention their “help”, as the robot that appears to be serving Ben a warm mug of coffee or cocoa certainly resembles H.E.R.B.I.E. the plucky droid created for the 1970s animated adaption (also more about that soon).
Now, on to the cast themselves. We’ll begin (ladies first, of course) with Vanessa Kirby a celebrated British actress perhaps best known for her roles in the Netflix series “The Crown” as Princess Margaret and as the “White Widow” in the MISSION IMPOSSIBLE franchise (she’s also in the FAST & FURIOUS franchise via the Hobbs & Shaw spinoff). She was recently in Ridley Scott’s NAPOLEON as Josephine. Ms. Kirby (nice last name) plays Susan Storm/Richards AKA the Invisible Girl/Woman.
One of our busiest actors, Pedro Pascal, is the leader of the team, Reed Richards AKA Mister Fantastic (nicknamed “Stretch-o”). This is his latest role in a film and TV career that goes back to 1997 (he was on an episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”). His “breakout” work may be in the Netflix series “Narcos” which led to parts in several action “franchises”. He was the villain in WONDER WOMAN 1984, a “cowboy” in KINGSMAN: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE, and is the man and voice behind the helmet in several seasons of “The Mandalorian” for Disney+. Most recently Pascal has been earning raves and award noms for playing the lead in HBO’s series based on the video game “The Last of Us”.
Another twenty-plus TV and veteran plays comics fan favorite Ben Grimm AKA the Thing (affectionately known as “Benji blue eyes”). Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s first notable role may be on HBO’s “Girls” which lead to roles in two big franchises, STAR WARS with the “Andor” Disney+ series and in the MCU (well TV really) with the Netflix series “The Punisher”. Recently he won his first Primetime Emmy as Richie in the FX series “The Bear”.
Finally, London-born actor Joseph Quinn takes on the role of Johnny Storm AKA the Human Torch (Ben calls him “Match-head”). His most prominent TV work (in addition to some independent films) includes “Game of Thrones”, “Catherine the Great” and his lauded breakout role as Eddie Munson in “Stranger Things” on Netflix.
In the director’s chair is Matt Shakman in his triumphant return to the MCU after helming the acclaimed Disney+ series “WandaVision”. He’s also helmed episodes of “The Boys”, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters”, “Game of Thrones” and most prolifically (43 shows) “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”.
Hmm, could the super quartet of comics meet up with the super quartet of music in 1964?
So what’s the history of this fantastical foursome? Well, part of their origin was instigated by the success of, as they were later called. “Brand Echhh’, or the Distinguished Competition. Legend, now somewhat debunked, is that Atlas, formerly Timely, publisher Martin Goodman asked some DC execs, while they were out golfing, just what was selling. They supposedly bragged about the sales of the Justice League of America. And so, Mr. Goodman, eager to jump on any “fad” instructed his editor Stan Lee to come up with a superhero team. Later Mr. Lee stated in interviews that he wanted out of the “funnybook” biz. His wife Joan advised him that if he was going to quit anyway he may as well write something that he’d find entertaining. He enlisted comic art icon Jack Kirby (who did a similar team book at DC, the Challengers of the Unknown) to do the pencil and character designs for the book. The first issue of The Fantastic Four in 1061 told the story of a quartet who decided to “get the jump” on our Cold War-era enemies by taking their untested rocket into space. But as they entered orbit mysterious cosmic rays penetrated the ship and sent it crashing back to Earth, The crew was unharmed, though each member acquired unique superpowers. Their investor/leader Reed Richards was able to stretch his body almost like rubber (or the Golden Age Quality Comic hero Plastic Man) and called himself Mister Fantastic (maybe that ego stretched, too). His old army buddy, co-pilot Ben Grimm. morphed into an astoundingly strong rock-like behemoth and took the less flattering moniker, the Thing. Shy Susan Storm seemingly vanished and then was able to re-materialize, so naturally she was the Invisible Girl, later maturing to Invisible Woman and being able to generate “force fields”. Her hot-headed kid brother Johnny burst into flames, was able to fly, and could toss fireballs while controlling heat. His alias has a history as one of the first superheroes from Timely was the android called the Human Torch. Since he was introduced in Marvel Comics issue #1 back in 1939, the Atlas line soon was renamed Marvel.
The book was an immediate smash hit (especially after getting their “hero uniforms” in issue #3 while bickering and clashing unlike any heroes in print), leading to a whole roster of superheroes. The FF was instrumental in promoting them as they appeared on the cover of the first issue of The Amazing Spider-Man (he thought they’d pay him to be part of the team). The Human Torch got his own solo series in Strange Tales, while the Thing would get a solo book in the 1980s. New characters would be introduced in the book, like the Black Panther, the Inhumans, and the Silver Surfer. Oh, that rogues gallery I mentioned earlier included the Mole Man, Galactus, the Red Ghost, Diablo, Klaw, and the greatest Marvel supervillain of them all, Doctor Victor Von Doom. With each issue, the creator team of Lee and Kirby just produced one science fiction-inspired epic after another and truly lived up to the “hype” line at the top of the cover title, “World’s Greatest Comic Magazine”. After one hundred issues, the duo finally left the book, which led to memorable runs by writers Roy Thomas, and Gerry Conway along with artists George Perez, John Buscema, and writer/artist John Byrne.
Of course, Hollywood would want the residents of NYC’s Baxter Building during the big mid-60s superhero craze on TV. The biggest animation studio for television, Hanna Barbera, scooped up the rights to produce a half-hour Saturday morning show for ABC in the Fall of 1967. It was a fairly faithful translation of the comics benefitting from the sleek, simplified design of Alex Toth and a stellar vocal cast headed by Gerald Mohr as Reed and Paul Frees as Ben (I can still hear them in my head when I read the stories). It helped that the show was followed by Spider-Man for that initial season.
There was a detour in syndicated radio in 1975, with Bill Murray voicing Johnny, before the FF returned to Saturday morning three years later. But this was a different lineup. As the Torch was part of a development package for Universal TV (which spawned the smash series of “The Incredible Hulk”) and supposed fears of immolating imitating kiddies, he was replaced by H.E.R.B.I.E. the robot (told ya’ I’d get back to him). It was produced by Depatie-Freling. HB would be back for a weird solo Thing show about a teenage Benjy Grimm (“Thing-ring, do your thing!”) before the full team was back in syndicated cartoons that ran from 1996 to 1996. In addition to guest spots on various Marvel animated shows, they’d get one more series in 2006, “Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes”.
Finally, a live-action film was produced…and shelved in 1994. In order to retain the rights, Constantin Film enlisted Roger Corman to produce a feature that played overseas but was pulled before it could screen in the States. The campy finished flick has become a bootleg video staple at comics conventions and inspired a terrific documentary, DOOMED: THE UNTOLD STORY OF ROGER CORMAN’S FANTASTIC FOUR, which can be streamed on several apps. BTW, I saw the movie Thing suit on display at the San Diego Comicon, which impressed me more than seeing it later in a grainy, blurry VHS dupe.
This paved the way for a big studio, 20th Century Fox via producer Chris Columbus, to step in. 2005 saw the release of FANTASTIC FOUR from director Tim Story, who also helmed its 2007 follow-up FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER. Both featured a pre-Captain America Chris Evans as Johnny Storm. And they’d be back in a much darker version in the critically lambasted FANT4STIC (the “funky” title didn’t help) directed by Josh Trank who engaged in a nasty public “smackdown” with the studio just days before its dismal release. Of course, I should mention the terrific cameo by (it’s been a couple of years, but I’ll slap a SPOILER ALERT on it anyway) John Krasinski as Reed in DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS.
And now, we’ve got more than a year to await the return of the original Marvel Comic superteam to return to the big screen. Yes, it’s due on July 25, 2025, but that could change. If so, this will give us more time to speculate about the plot. Perhaps the next big reveal will be the villain. My bet is on Doctor Doom as he was part of all the previous movies. Of course, there are rumblings of Galactus or even the Frightful Four. So, I’ll leave you with the first bit of FF merchandising, the T-shirt that was sold through the ’60s comics (oh, if only the superhero craze had lasted another year we would have gotten an Aurora model kit set…*sigh*). If my repro print still fits I’ll be wearing it adorned with my original M.M.M.S. pin to the multiplex for the premiere. See you there, True Believer! Excelsior! Or should I say, “Flame on! It’s Clobberin’ Time!”?
