‘Fantastic Four’: Breaking Down Reports of Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm, and Other Cast Members
After breaking the news on The Hot Mic podcast, Jeff Sneider is reporting on Above the Line that Marvel Studios is zeroing in on their Fantastic Four cast, with three of the four main roles already filled (save for final negotiations to be ratified after the SAG-AFTRA strike is over).
First things first, the story will be led by Sue Storm, as opposed to the classic approach to anchor it on Reed Richards. According to the report, Vanessa Kirby is Marvel’s choice to play the character, and it looks like she was interested. This is where the waters start to get muddy, as the strike is definitely complicating everything (as it should). From the sound of things, Marvel was looking into building their entire team around Sue Storm, and they offered the part to Kirby, who would have accepted. Whether the deal was closed before the strike was called, or even negotiations had started, we don’t know yet. But it looks like it’s only a matter of time.
As far as Sue’s brother goes, it looks like Marvel wants Stranger Things star Joseph Quinn for the part. Once again, we don’t know the status of the negotiations, but it looks like this will be finalized once the actors’ strike is called off. If so, this would be the second big role that Quinn lands this year after joining Gladiator 2 as Emperor Caracalla.
Early on in the podcast, Sneider incorrectly said that Jack Quaid was Marvel’s choice, which the Boys star quickly shot down on social media, while also asking people to donate to the SAG-AFTRA Foundation.
Hello everyone. Nope. Not playing Johnny Storm but hey I’m flattered. Now that you’re here though, donate to the @sagaftra foundation if you can! https://t.co/ertJTWWhYb
— Jack Quaid (@JackQuaid92) August 3, 2023
As far as Reed Richards goes, it seems like this is the only role Marvel hasn’t decided on yet. An offer was made to Adam Driver months ago, but he passed after he couldn’t connect with the character, as Sneider said last week. With Josh Friedman now picking up the keyboard and doing a rewrite of the script, Sneider speculates that Marvel could go back to the actor with the new script and see if he will accept. According to the reporter, Marvel is interested in getting a movie star for this part, so that they can market the entire film around him. There is supposedly another name at play that hasn’t been disclosed yet. Rumors of Matt Smith started circulating recently as well, but Sneider confirmed they won’t hold for long.
Finally, there is a name already attached to the Ben Grimm character, aka The Thing, but it hasn’t transpired yet. Sneider says the role will be filled with an overweight actor, just not the long-rumored Paul Walter Hauser. There were rumors about perhaps The Bear star Ebon Moss-Bachrach getting the role — according to the report, Moss-Bachrach will be a part of the cast, just not as Ben Grimm. The role hasn’t transpired yet, but Sneider made the educated guess that it could be the Silver Surfer.
We know that Galactus will be the main villain of Fantastic Four, and as such, the Silver Surfer’s inclusion seems like a no-brainer. (Rumors from a few months ago mentioned Matt Shakman being involved in a Special Presentation for Disney Plus focused on the character that would be shot simultaneously with the Fantastic Four movie.) Apparently, Marvel wants to cast a Latino actor as Galactus, but they haven’t made a decision yet. Months ago, there were heavy rumors that Antonio Banderas was being eyed for the part, and the actor even added fuel to the fire when he posted a behind-the-scenes video getting a mold of his face. Sneider was dubious this will be the case, but here’s the part that was left out — Banderas is not Latino. Now, whether Marvel does make a distinction between Latinos and Spaniards (and there is a big one), we don’t know, but if we want to get technical, that’s the truth.
For Fantastic Four to get in front of the cameras in time to meet its May 2, 2025, release date, Marvel needs both strikes to end sooner rather than later. They still don’t have a finished script, for which they need Friedman back, and they can’t sign any actors and lock their schedules before the studios agree to SAG-AFTRA’s terms.
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as authors like Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
