Now that Marvel has accumulated pretty much all of its properties back to its movie studio, it’s pretty much guaranteed they’ll turn the most popular of them into members of the ever-growing MCU. One of the most beloved, which has somehow just never seemed to gain traction at the box office, is The Fantastic Four. 20th Century Fox developed two films, the sequel even incorporating a character Marvel fans had been foaming at the mouth to see on the screen: The Silver Surfer. Still, it didn’t work, and neither film did justice to the decades of comic books that came before them. Fox tried again in 2015 with a total reboot, cast with young A-list actors, and loosely based on the Fantastic Four as they exist in the Ultimate Marvel Universe. Again, a bomb.
The franchise seems to be cursed. And yet, Marvel Studios has turned even the most unlikely titles (Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy…) into major hits, and there's promise in their announced reboot that will be directed by Spider-Man: Homecoming, Far From Home, and No Way Home filmmaker Jon Watts. They have the technology. They can make them better than they were. Better, stronger, faster. But who will they cast in their new interpretation of FF? Well, we’ve been thinking about that, and we have several ideas for cast lists based on a number of possible premises with which they might go. Below are some picks for a wide arrange of casting choices for Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, The Thing, and Dr. Doom.
Mr. Fantastic
Joshua Jackson – This man has earned his stripes, and yet has never played a superhero on the big screen. He’s a fantastic (no pun intended) actor, as illustrated in shows like The Affair and Fringe. His latest role in Peacock’s Dr. Death was jaw-dropping, and had me thinking of him for the Dr. Doom role. But Jackson actually makes for a better hero than a villain in most cases, with his earnest face and his believable compassion. That coupled with his ability to wax intellectual, even if he himself doesn’t know what he’s talking about, puts him front and center for a shot at Mr. Fantastic. With the addition of a couple of gray streaks in his hair, perhaps. Perhaps not.
Dylan O’Brien – If you’re looking for an up-and-coming star with looks and a boat-load of talent, look no further than Dylan O’Brien. He was the only high point in the Maze Runner franchise, and would have really made the map with Love and Monsters, had the movie not been released in the midst of the pandemic. He is a protagonist with heart and spirit, and he shows that in every subtle gesture he makes.
Aasif Mandvi – Aasif Mandvi has been around Hollywood for a long time. You may not have noticed him, but he’s been in Spider-Man 2, The Last Airbender, Premium Rush, A Series of Unfortunate Events, and a plethora of other shows and movies. But it’s his current role in the excellently eerie show Evil that made me think of him for the role of Mr. Fantastic. And no, it’s not because he told Kristen’s (Katya Herbers) daughters that his name was Ben the Magnificent. It’s because he displays logic, compassion, and bravery in the role of Ben Shakir. He’s the science/tech guy, and a believable one to boot. And he deserves a shot at the big leagues.
John Stamos – This man could make even gray skunk streaks on the sides of his head look handsome. Throw in a white lab coat, and we’re back to ER good-looking. And if you’re thinking that Stamos isn’t badass enough to be a superhero, let’s not forget that Uncle Jesse once rode his motorcycle along the edge of a 6-story building. Whatever the case, I’m sure there are plenty of women out there who want to see this guy’s appendages stretch.
Invisible Woman
Kristen Stewart – Since breaking out with Twilight, Stewart has proven her acting chops and then some. From her heartfelt, guilt-ridden portrayal in Adventureland, to her two recent action vehicles Underwater and the rebooted Charlie’s Angels, Stewart’s got the goods. She could slip into the boots of Sue Storm with ease.
Millie Bobby Brown – This girl has been through the ringer. Everyone knows her from her breakout role as Eleven in Stranger Things, which required an incredible range of emotions. At a very young age, she showed credible fear, warmth, strength, and ferocity. In the Netflix film, Enola Holmes, she demosntrated her ability to lead a film all her own.
Dichen Lachman – Dichen Lachman is an absolutely gorgeous and talented Nepalese-Australian actress who has probably been in something you’ve seen, even if it’s only her short role as Daisy’s mother in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Marvel owes her better than that tiny, thankless, and fortunately forgettable role. Other things she’s been in include Dollhouse, The 100, Shameless, Altered Carbon, and Animal Kingdom. She’s displayed action prowess on many of these vehicles, as well as smarts, cunning, and emotional depth. And while not a requirement for the role, she even seems to have natural blonde hair, just like Sue Storm.
Melissa McCarthy – McCarthy, with her spot-on humor and physical comedy would make this role hilarious. Imagine the hijinks she would get into turning invisible and trying to hide from enemies. Classic. She’s also got acting chops to spare and the thought of her and John Stamos together is…mmm, well, almost too hot to think about.
Human Torch
Boyd Holbrook – This boy’s got fire. You can see that in everything he’s been in. From his breakout role in Narcos to his bad boy in Logan, Holbrook has a pent-up kinetic energy that you can almost feel from the screen. He’s born to be a Human Torch. I think he’d be a force to be reckoned with.
Dacre Montgomery – Another alum of the Stranger Things cast, Dacre Montgomery made an incredible impression on fans of the show in the role of Billy, a wild, violent teen, as well as an abusive big brother. In the end though, he redeemed and sacrificed himself to save Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven. It was a fantastic show of heroism. That combined with his ability to play reckless and dangerous gives him all the elements to make a great Human Torch.
Ross Butler – Ross Butler has got quite the Hollywood resume for one so young. He’s been in plenty of TV shows including Teen Wolf and Riverdale, not to mention his spots in Shazam! and as the voice of the Spine Chief in Raya and the Last Dragon. But the role that makes him really stand out is his performance as Zach Dempsey in Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why. Anyone who’s seen the show knows how weighty the issues dealt with therein were, and what kind of delicacy they needed to be handled with by the cast. Butler did a wonderful job as a high school jock dealing with the fallout of everything that happened around him. He was strong in both spirit and body. That’s the kind of Human Torch for which we should be looking.
Nicolas Cage – Yes, Nicolas Cage was the Ghost Rider, but he did not put all of his insanity into the role like he should have. Think about Cage on fire in the movie Kick-Ass, shrilly screaming at his child to take out the bad guys and maybe put him out when she gets the opportunity. Now that’s the Nicolas Cage I want to see yelling “Flame On!” and bursting into the skies. With his recent psychotic roles in Willy’s Wonderland and Mandy, I think this pick could make for a very entertaining movie.
The Thing
Shawn Hatosy – Shawn Hatosy has had a long career as an actor, but hasn't quite gotten that big screen break as a leading man just yet. One thing we can all remember is the role he currently inhabits as Andrew “Pope” Cody on the TNT series Animal Kingdom. He plays a disturbed, tortured son of a semi-sociopathic femme fatale. It's a complex, furious, tortured portrayal of a messed-up kid grown into a man, with a steam engine’s worth of fire in his belly. His change-on-a dime furiousness is exactly what’s needed for the Thing.
O’Shea Jackson Jr. – A dead ringer for his father, Jackson Jr. actually played his father, Ice Cube, in the movie Straight Outta Compton. And he did a fantastic job at it too. While he’s still young in his career, having only been in a couple of other recognizable roles (Long Shot, Godzilla: King of Monsters), Jackson Jr. has the talent and the drive to keep moving skyward. He’s just the right mix of volatile action and comedic timing to make a memorable Thing.
Peter Dinklage – This is not meant as a joke or a sign of any disrespect against Dinklage, if that’s what you’re thinking. On the contrary, this would be a very fresh take on the story of the Thing that only an actor of Dinklage’s caliber could pull off. In the comics and on the big screen (so far), the Thing has always been treated as a tragic character, cursed by cosmic rays to forever exist as this rock-skinned beast. But what if someone who felt slighted their whole life and made to feel small were hit by those same cosmic rays, and turned into a hulking creature of immense strength? That would change the narrative a bit. Maybe even make it more interesting. I believe Dinklage could make this happen.
DJ Qualls – As opposed to Peter Dinklage, this would be funny. Qualls has always used his looks to comedic effect, with his weedy body and disproportionately large head. Constantly taking roles as the underdog and the picked-upon, Qualls could take the themes presented by a Dinklage casting and make them more humorous, using his giant rocky form to humiliate his tormentors.
Dr. Doom
Iwan Rheon – I know what you’re thinking. He doesn’t have a long, spectacular resume. But he has one role under his belt that makes all the difference. He was Ramsay Snow, the other bastard in The Battle of the Bastards on Game of Thrones. His cunning and artifice followed by his almost demonic acts of torture cast upon Theon Greyjoy in the show portray a Dr. Doom even more evil than the comics have seldom dared to display.
Ray Nicholson – Another member of pop culture royalty, Ray Nicholson is the son of actors Jack Nicholson and Rebecca Broussard. He hasn’t done much yet, but he has made waves in Mayans M.C., Promising Young Woman, and most recently, as the bad boy in Amazon Prime’s Panic. He’s got the looks (which will make the disfiguring of them and the iron mask of Doom even more calamitous) and he’s got charisma to spare. All he needs is the right role to put him on the map.
Michael Ealy – Michael Ealy is famous for his turns in the Barbershop movies and a number of Tyler Perry productions, but he’s also taken a few swipes at genre storytelling. These include Almost Human, Westworld, and the unfortunate reboot of Jacob’s Ladder. In any case, the man is a fine actor who’s put in his time for a decent role in a big blockbuster tentpole movie. He has the emotional range and depth to play a dark character, and I can see those haunting aquamarine eyes staring out from behind a metal faceplate. Can you?
Mickey Rourke – As evidenced by roles like The Wrestler, Rourke is still quite a great actor, and makes one hell of a threat as displayed in Iron Man 2 and in the recent film, Girl. And I think he’d make an even more intensely watchable villain once the metal mask is firmly placed on his face. I know I’m not alone here.