Fantastic Four was one of the MCU projects that Marvel mentioned in July 2019, when it first revealed its upcoming Phase 4 titles. Since then, Marvel has continued adding TV shows and movies to Phase 4, but hasn’t shared a release date for Fantastic Four. Thirteen months ago, we learned that Jon Watts will direct the film, and we assumed Fantastic Four‘s production wouldn’t start until Spider-Man: No Way Home came out. Marvel trolled fans once again last May, reminding them that Fantastic Four is in the works. But the studio has yet to reveal the cast or release date for one of the most anticipated reboots coming to the MCU. However, there’s one exciting development suggesting that more Fantastic Four news might be closer than we thought.
The MCU Phase 4 schedule
Marvel upset fans last October when it announced a massive delay for its MCU Phase 4 titles.
Marvel had three untitled projects set for 2023, and we’ve always suspected that one of them is Fantastic Four. But Marvel pushed those dates back, probably beyond 2023. Moreover, the last confirmed 2023 Phase 4 film is Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which comes out on July 28th, 2023.
That’s to say that the Fantastic Four release “getting close” means that the movie might premiere in late 2023 at the very earliest. But 2024 looks more likely. That’s something that we need to be aware of before addressing the latest development.
Why the Fantastic Four release might be getting close
A report from Variety says that the Final Destination franchise will see a reboot of its own. How is that relevant to Fantastic Four? Well, Jon Watts will work on the sixth movie in the Final Destination franchise as a producer.
“Both Dianne [McGunigle] and I have been massive fans of Final Destination from the very beginning,” Watts said in a statement. “So to be able to have a hand in crafting a new story with the original team and New Line is going to be both fun and exciting.”
But what is really important here is that Watts will not direct the movie — from Variety:
Watts is only set to produce Final Destination. His next directing gig will still likely be Marvel Studios’ reboot of the Fantastic Four superhero franchise, which remains undated.
One more thing
That’s not enough to spoil the Fantastic Four release date. But if the report is accurate, then Watts will start working on Fantastic Four soon. Again, it’s all relative given the Phase 4 delays. But we’ll point out that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is already shooting, even though the movie won’t launch until May 2023. Similarly, Marvel has started production on Quantumania.
That said, if Watts is really going to direct Fantastic Four next, we’d expect Marvel to make a big fuss over it. Marvel has yet to announce who will play the MCU’s Fantastic Four. And fans can’t wait to see the cast. Marvel will probably share news about the cast and release date for Fantastic Four well before production starts. And if Watts is going to start work on Fantastic Four in the near future, then the cast announcement could be very close.
Separately, rumors tease a Fantastic Four appearance for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. But we might be in store for Fantastic Four variants from a different universe for that movie.
