If you’re looking for the next Fantastic Four reboot, here is what we know so far.
When it comes to Marvel Cinematic Universe upcoming movies, there are truly so many amazing things happening. And, I’m sure as time goes on, more and more is going to come out about these new films and characters that we are all super excited for.
Which is pretty much the case for the latest reboot of the Fantastic Four franchise.
Attempted twice before, Fantastic Four hasn’t necessarily had a good track record when it comes to its movies, with both adaptations receiving less than stellar reviews. However, with Disney buying 20th Century Studios, and therefore all their licensing deals, they have the rights to the famous superhero team once again, which means that the Fantastic Four reboot for the MCU is coming. Just not soon.
For those who are wondering when we might be seeing the latest and greatest version of Fantastic Four, this is what we know so far about the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe film.
What Is The Fantastic Four Release Date?
As of March 2024, Fantastic Four has a release date of July 25, 2025, according to an official announcement from Marvel on their Twitter page in February 2024.
At San Diego Comic-Con in 2022, it was confirmed that the latest Fantastic Four reboot was going to come out in November 2024. However, that release date was pushed back, along with those of several other Marvel projects. Then, in June 2023, the dates were pushed back even more, according to Deadline. We were at May 2025 for a time, but that was later pushed again to July.
Don’t expect them to be in any 2024 release schedule.
The Four Leads Are Officially Confirmed
Also announced in the Marvel Studios tweet that you saw before, it’s been confirmed that Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn will appear as the main characters in Fantastic Four. Here is who they will play, as reported by Deadline:
Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards
Pedro Pascal will play Reed Richards, the leader of the group in Fantastic Four. The actor has received praise for his role in The Last of Us on HBO, but has appeared in a variety of other movies and shows like Game of Thrones, Narcos and more. Pascal shared how excited he was in an Instagram post:
Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm
Vanessa Kirby will portray Sue Storm in Fantastic Four. The actress has appeared in Napoleon, The Crow, Hobbs & Shaw, The Mission: Impossible film franchise and more. Similarly, Kirby shared her excitement for the new role on Instagram:
Happy Valentine’s Day everybody. From our family to yours. Very honoured to take on Sue Storm, Marvel’s OG lady since 1961. I hope to do her justice.
Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm
Joseph Quinn will play Johnny Storm. The actor gained fame for his portrayal of Stranger Things Season 4 all-star, Eddie Munson, and will also have a role in A Quiet Place: Day One. Quinn also shared an Instagram post, with his comment simply saying, “Fantastic.”
Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm
Lastly, Ebon Moss-Bachrach is confirmed to appear as Ben Grimm, otherwise known as “the Thing” in Fantastic Four. The actor is primarily known for his role in The Bear cast, but also held a minor role in the No Hard Feelings cast in 2023. Moss-Bachrach also posted a picture of the poster on his Instagram, saying, “from our family to yours: HAPPY VALENTINE’S!!! #thefantasticfour”
Such a talented group of people – all of whom I can’t wait to see show their awesome skills in this new superhero world.
Fantastic Four Will Not Be An “Origin Story”
Fantastic Four is not going to be an origin story. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Kevin Feige confirmed in an interview with the outlet in 2022 that the studio was taking the story in a different direction, and we wouldn’t be given an origin story like in many other superhero movies. Feige said:
A lot of people know this origin. 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.
Honestly, thank God. I have seen too many origin stories in superhero movies and I am ready to just swing into the action with this film, so if they want to keep out the origin, please do it. I am so eager to see what comes next.
Matt Shakman also talked about the upcoming stories that could be told in the film in an interview with Inverse in November 2023, saying that the comics were a big inspiration for the film:
I’m not so much looking at the other movies. I'm looking at the comics themselves. I'm a huge comic book fan. I’ve been a big fan of the Fantastic Four since I was a kid. So going back to Kirby and Lee and Byrne and following all the way up to what's happening, certainly Hickman and Waid and Ryan North, what he's been doing. I'm trying to figure out who these characters are to me and how to bring them to life in the best possible way, and that's really where I've started and how we've approached it.
I’m so ready for this movie and the stories he is going to tell.
The Movie Will Be A Part Of Phase Six
The good news about having to wait that long for the Fantastic Four film to come out is that it’s going to be a part of Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
For those who don’t know, Phase 5 began with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and is going to end with Captain America: Brave New World.
However, with that, Fantastic Four is going to begin the last phase of what Kevin Feige has called “The Multiverse Saga.”
Matt Shakman Is Going To Direct
Announced at 2022's D23 Expo, via Marvel Studios' Twitter page, it was confirmed that Matt Shakman is set to direct the upcoming reboot of Fantastic Four, as we already know from the previous sections.
I’m sure that, at some point, Marvel fans have heard of Matt Shakman. While he’s directed episodes of shows such as the hilarious The Great, as well as It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Fargo, and Game of Thrones, he is known for one big role in the MCU and that’s his work on the legendary Marvel TV show, WandaVision.
Shakman directed and produced the series that went on to score several nominations at the 2021 Primetime Emmy Awards, and made the powerful Scarlet Witch even more beloved than she already was – which made her the best antagonist in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
The director hasn’t done any other work on Marvel movies or shows in the past, so this will be his first time stepping into the director’s chair for a Marvel movie and I can’t wait to see what he does. Even if Jon Watts (who directed the MCU's Spider-Man trilogy) did leave the production, I feel that Fantastic Four is in good hands with Shakman.
The Script Was Written By Josh Friedman
The script was written by Josh Friedman, according to The Hollywood Reporter, in March 2023.
Originally, Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer were the original writers for the project but were replaced by Friedman. The screenwriter has worked on a variety of different movies and television shows, including War of the Worlds, Snowpiercer, Foundation and more, so I think the movie is in good hands. He even worked on the story for Avatar: The Way of Water, so it’ll be exciting to see what kind of tale he has for these heroes.
Filming Will Hopefully Begin At Some Point In 2024
I know this isn’t the news we necessarily wanted, since nothing is set in stone, but we can say we are at least expecting a 2024 production start date for Fantastic Four when it comes to filming.
Originally, we thought that filming would begin in January 2024 from a report in May 2023 from The Hollywood Reporter, but then it ended up getting pushed back.
Matt Shakman said in October 2023 to Collider that they were aiming to begin filming in spring 2024. While ComicBookMovie reported that Jeff Sneider said filming may not begin until summer 2024 in January.
There was also a report from Production Weekly (via The Trail Blazer) in January 2024 that production for the movie is set to begin in August, so at least at this point it feels like we’re inching closer to a summer 2024 start date.
All this waiting for new news about this movie is driving me crazy – here’s hoping we get some new info very soon. I’ll just continue to watch all the latest and greatest Marvel movies until then.
