How ‘The Fantastic Four’ Could Revitalize Marvel
Christopher Nolan recently made a bold proclamation regarding the casting of Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark in ‘Iron Man’, deeming it “one of the most consequential casting decisions that have ever been made in the history of the movie business.”
Looking forward, a similar sentiment may soon apply to the four actors recently selected to portray the titular superheroes in Marvel’s ‘The Fantastic Four’: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach.
Like Downey, each of these performers boasts recent experience in high-profile productions — Pascal with ‘The Mandalorian’ and ‘The Last of Us’, Kirby with the latest ‘Mission: Impossible’ instalments, Quinn with ‘Stranger Things’, and Moss-Bachrach with ‘Andor’. Yet, akin to Downey, none have led their major studio action blockbuster before joining forces with Marvel.
What’s particularly intriguing about Marvel’s recent announcement is the playful manner in which it was presented, with an illustration of the actors as their characters celebrating Valentine’s Day. From the nostalgic title treatment to the mid-century modern costumes and setting, including a detail suggesting a 1960s era with Ben reading a December 1963 issue of Life magazine, it strongly suggests that ‘The Fantastic Four’ will be firmly rooted in that period.
Moreover, this indicates that ‘The Fantastic Four’ may inhabit a distinct parallel universe separate from the core Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). If there were a family of space-age superheroes contemporaneous with Peggy Carter and Howard Stark, such significant figures in MCU history, it stands to reason that their existence would have been previously acknowledged. Marvel’s decision to set the film in the 1960s signals a deliberate departure, offering audiences a fresh entry point into the story without the burden of prior MCU knowledge.
However, it’s anticipated that eventually, the Fantastic Four will integrate into the main MCU, likely culminating in 2027’s ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’, following the storyline from the 2015 comics run of the same name, involving multiple parallel universes colliding.
This could potentially pave the way for a semi-rebooted MCU with the Fantastic Four and the X-Men (as hinted in the post-credits scene of “The Marvels”) assuming central roles in a new era of cinematic storytelling.
-Sushmita Sarkar
