A new Fantastic Four movie is in the works, meaning Marvel's First Family is finally joining the MCU. The film will mark the start of Marvel Phase 6, which might seem a way off, considering Marvel Phase 5 has only just begun with the release of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. But, there's still plenty of information out there to pore over while you wait – and we've got everything you need to know right here.
Casting rumors are circulating, but nothing is set in stone just yet, meaning the identities of the next Reed Richards, Susan Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm are mysteries for now. But, after his cameo in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, John Krasinski seems a likely candidate to play Mr. Fantastic – though he doesn't seem to think he will return to the role. In better news, though, there is a director confirmed following the departure of Spider-Man helmer Jon Watts. So, for all that and more, check out the below and get up to speed on Fantastic Four.
Fantastic Four release date
After a shake-up in the Marvel release schedule, Fantastic Four will hit theaters on February 14, 2025, moving several months back from November 8, 2024 – which was originally announced by none other than Kevin Feige at San Diego Comic-Con. The film is still set to launch Phase 6 with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever closing out Marvel Phase 4, and Thunderbolts closing out Phase 5.
Fantastic Four plot
The Fantastic Four plot has not been revealed yet by Marvel, but Kevin Feige confirmed that the film won't be another origin story. The quartet originally gained superpowers after being exposed to cosmic rays on a scientific mission to outer space, but this will seemingly not be portrayed on screen again. “A lot of people know this origin story. A lot of people know the basics. How do we take that and bring something that they’ve never seen before? We’ve set a very high bar for ourselves with bringing that to the screen," Feige said at San Diego Comic-Con.
Since the origin story has formed the premise of the previous adaptations, it makes sense that Marvel would use a different approach for the upcoming movie. As well as this, the studio does tend to shy away from traditional storylines in their MCU movies. And given the Fantastic Four first debuted back in 1961, there are plenty of other directions they could head in. There are also plenty of villains the new movie could introduce, including Namor, the Silver Surfer, Galactus, Doctor Doom, and KI’rt. They’ve also had run-ins with Ronan the Accuser in the past, who was played by Lee Pace in Captain Marvel and Guardians of the Galaxy.
Fantastic Four cast
No casting has been confirmed yet for the Fantastic Four, despite several rumors. Marvel has not even announced if any of its previous stars will be reprising their roles in the upcoming film. As soon as the Fantastic Four cast is confirmed, we'll keep you updated. But in the meantime, we’ve pulled together all that’s currently known about the lead characters: Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm.
Who will play Reed Richards? Will John Krasinski star in Fantastic Four?
Reed Richards, or Mister Fantastic, is one of the founding members of the Fantastic Four. He’s known as one of the smartest scientists around, with expertise in engineering, alien biology, chemistry, and physics – and superhero power-wise? He’s known for his stretching abilities. So who will play Marvel’s smartest man?
If you've seen Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, then you will know John Krasinski appeared as Richards. He was part of the Illuminati, a group of superheroes tasked with making decisions that will impact the multiverse. Joined by Anson Mount's Black Bolt, Hayley Atwell's Captain Carter, Lashana Lynch's Captain Marvel, Patrick Stewart's Professor X, and Chiwetel Ejiofor's Mordo, he was part of the group judging Stephen Strange’s (Benedict Cumberbatch) multiverse behavior.
He appeared in the classic blue uniform, complete with the Fantastic Four logo on it as he was described as "the smartest man alive". Richards even mentioned his wife – who we can only speculate was Sue Storm – and their children. However, there’s one problem: he was brutally killed by Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) within minutes of his introduction.
Therefore, it’s quite difficult to speculate on if Krasinski will play Richards going forward. Of course, this is the multiverse we’re talking about, so there is likely another version of the character in Earth 616. But we don’t yet know if this is who the Fantastic Four movie will focus on and if they’ll look like Krasinski. While Doctor Strange’s variants looked like him, both Loki and Spider-Man have been played by different people. This all being said, if we were to hedge our bets, it seems likely Krasinksi will return. He’s a fan-favorite casting and a big Hollywood star – so it would be a surprise if this was the last we saw of him suited up.
But, Multiverse of Madness director Sam Raimi has indicated that the casting was meant only as fan wish-fulfilment. "It's so funny that [Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige] cast John because the fans had a dream of who the perfect Reed Richards would be," the director said in the film's audio commentary, adding: "And because this is an alternate universe, I think Kevin said, 'Let's make that dream come true.'"
Krasinski isn't so sure he'll be back either. "There aren't any discussions at all, the only discussion I had was actually in the second-to-last week of Jack Ryan," Krasinski told TheWrap (opens in new tab). "Kevin Feige called and said would you ever fly to L.A. and play in our sandbox for a day? I was honored to do it. I flew right from Budapest when we wrapped and went right to the Doctor Strange set. I'm a big fan of all those characters and that world, so to get to play in that sandbox for one day was a real thrill."
Mister Fantastic has previously been played by two other actors: Ioan Gruffudd and Miles Teller. Gruffudd has previously ruled out returning to the role, telling Digital Spy (opens in new tab) that he’d prefer to return as a villain. Teller was less resolute, telling ComicBook.com (opens in new tab) that he wouldn’t mind returning to the superhero world. He said: "I think those characters in the movie adaptations, in the shows, have really come a long way. And I think they've really, you know, started diving into the complexity of these characters."
More recently, Teller admitted to The Digital Fix (opens in new tab) that he "wouldn't have a problem" appearing in a future Marvel movie, so long as the script was good and he could see himself working alongside the project's established team of cast and crew.
Who will play Sue Storm? Will Emily Blunt play Sue Storm?
Sue Storm is the Invisible Woman, another founding member of the Fantastic Four and Mister Fantastic’s wife. After being exposed to cosmic radiation, she’s gifted the power of invisibility as well as being able to create force fields. In previous film iterations, she’s been played by Jessica Alba and Kate Mara. Although, no actor has shared a desire to reprise the role.
Fans have been speculating if Emily Blunt, who is Krasinski’s wife in real life, could take on the role. She pretty infamously had to turn down the role of Black Widow due to a scheduling issue, which later went to Scarlett Johansson. And she and Krasinski have a pedigree of working together on screen in the past after appearing in the A Quiet Place movies. However, Blunt previously spoke about how the rumors are just based on fan castings. In 2020, she told The Howard Stern Show (opens in new tab): "That is fan-casting. No one has received a phone call. That’s just people saying, 'Wouldn’t that be great?'"
Depending on who you believe, other actors have been linked. They include Jodie Comer and Saoirse Ronan, though nothing has been confirmed as of writing.
Who will play Johnny Storm?
Johnny Storm is Sue’s younger brother who also gets exposed to cosmic radiation on their doomed mission. He develops the power to turn his body into a fiery, plasma-like state. There have been no rumors about casting for this role so far. In the past, Chris Evans and Michael B. Jordan took on the role. It is very unlikely we’d see Evans reprise his role as the Human Torch after he went on to bag a huge MCU role as Captain America. Jordan also appeared as a new MCU character when he played Erik Killmonger in Black Panther. So we expect some new casting for the role.
Who will play Ben Grimm?
Ben Grimm was an astronaut who joined his best friend Richards on the trip to outer space. However, his body had the most extreme reaction to the cosmic radiation, turning him into The Thing – a super-strong rock-like monster. Michael Chiklis played the part in the 2005 and 2007 versions while Jamie Bell took on the role in 2015. Neither actor expects to reprise the part, but Chiklis did have some advice for his successor. Speaking to Screen Rant (opens in new tab), he said they should "go CGI" with their costumes. He added: "Wardrobe was something else, but it was still a pretty amazing experience."
Who will direct Fantastic Four?
As revealed at D23, WandaVision director Matt Shakman is officially directing Fantastic Four.
When Fantastic Four was announced, Jon Watts was signed on to direct the film. The filmmaker is behind the hugely successful trilogy Spider-Man: Homecoming, Spider-Man: Far From Home, and Spider-Man: No Way Home for Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios. However, he’s now confirmed he’s stepped back from taking on another superhero movie.
He told The Hollywood Reporter (opens in new tab): "Making three Spider-Man films was an incredible and life-changing experience for me. I’m eternally grateful to have been a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for seven years. I’m hopeful we’ll work together again, and I can’t wait to see the amazing vision for Fantastic Four brought to life."
Looking for more Marvel? Check out our guide to how to watch the Marvel movies in order as well as what you need to know about the Marvel timeline.
