The Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings red carpet premiere and limited fan screening didn’t just bring over the official reviews and the fully confirmed plot spoilers. We also got plenty of new interviews from key Marvel players, including Kevin Feige. The man who has been charting the MCU for almost two decades answered plenty of questions about Shang-Chi and other highly anticipated Marvel projects. He addressed the Deadpool 3 and Avengers 5 release timeframes and teased the arrival of Iron Man’s replacement. But he also talked about Marvel’s approach for the Fantastic Four cast, without detailing any of the names Marvel is eying for the project.
Previous Fantastic Four cast members
Fantastic Four
is one of those comic book properties that’s right up there with Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, and X-Men when it comes to reboots. We’ve had two different Fantastic Four crews so far, involved in two separate projects in the past twenty years.
There is one Fantastic Four cast we remember more fondly. It includes Ioan Gruffudd (Reed Richards), Michael Chiklis (Ben Grimm), Chris Evans (Johnny Storm), and Jessica Alba (Sue Storm). The actors appeared in Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer. Chris Evans then played the superhero role that his most famous for, Steve Rogers/Captain America.
Then came the 2015 Fantastic Four reboot that everyone hates. Different actors played the same team, including Miles Teller, Jamie Bell, Michael B. Jordan, and Kate Mara. Of those, Jordan would jump to the MCU soon after the 2015 Fantastic Four fiasco, playing Black Panther villain Killmonger in 2018.
The new Fantastic Four crew
Marvel confirmed in 2019 that it’s making another Fantastic Four movie now that
We have no idea when the film will hit theaters, although rumors say Marvel plans to release it in 2023. This would mean Marvel will have to shoot the movie next year. The full cast announcement might be coming soon.
Feige isn’t ready to answer that question yet. In a recent interview, the exec told ComicBook that Marvel plans to stick to the recipe that has worked for so many MCU movies so far. That’s combining well-known talent with newcomers.
“I think the MCU is a beautiful combination of both (established actors and new faces),” Feige said. “I think you look no further than Simu in Shang-Chi, like Chris Hemsworth, like Tom Hiddleston, like Tom Holland, an actor that hadn’t been seen by a tremendous amount of people before, or you have a Benedict [Cumberbatch] stepping into Doctor Strange or Christian Bale stepping into Gor in our thor film. It is always a beautiful combination of both, and it really is about the search for the best actor for the job whether that actor is known to the world yet or not.”
The cast we want
Feige told ET Online in July that he didn’t think Marvel would announce the Fantastic Four cast soon. “This [Black Widow] is our first red carpet event in two years,” he said. “We’ll see what happens with upcoming gatherings and fan events where we can release more news. I hope sometime in the near future.”
Fans have long asked Marvel to cast two particular actors as Reed Richards and Sue Storm. That’s John Krasinski and his wife, Emily Blunt. They’ve both addressed these rumors in interviews. Krasinski seemed interested and excited while Blunt shot down speculation that she’ll be joining the Fantastic Four cast soon.
Hopefully, we’ll soon learn what actors will play the Fantastic Four superheroes to join the Avengers in future crossovers.
