HOME TRAILERS RELEASE DATES PODCASTS REVIEWS POSTERS INTERVIEWS BOB $TENCIL NEWS FEEDS ABOUT APPS

LATEST NEWS

Rumor: Marvel's Fantastic Four Being Rebooted, Too?!

by Alex Billington
March 9, 2009
Source: IESB

Superheroes are hot in Hollywood right now. And 20th Century Fox is not. Although Watchmen didn't break any records (it only made $55.7 million opening weekend), it did fare pretty well and has caused quite a bit of commotion. On the other side of town, however, Fox is still stuck in a rut trying to figure out how they can actually make money again (besides suing other studios). They're already working on rebooting both Daredevil and Planet of the Apes, so why not reboot another nearly dead superhero franchise - Fantastic Four? According to IESB, a reboot is in the works, complete with a new director and a new cast.

The first Fantastic Four, which hit in 2005, went on to make $155 million, which could barely be called a success for Fox. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, on the other hand, only made $132 million domestically, just barely above its $130 million budget. Disregarding the box office numbers, though, the Fantastic Four movies in general seem to be some of the most disliked superhero adaptations, alongside of Daredevil, Elektra (both of those were Fox as well), and Catwoman. Fox wants this reboot a bit "less bubble gum" and follow more of the Iron Man template this time, which was unquestionably a big success.

So here's the thing - I actually think Fantastic Four has a lot of potential. The problem is you can't let someone like Tim Story direct. Those of you are that real comic book fans know that Reed Richards aka Mr. Fantastic, the smartest man in the world, shows up in so many of Marvel's comics because almost everyone comes to him for help solving their problems. I'd love to see them tap into that true potential that the comics have always had. Obviously we're not going to get any crossovers (since Fox has their hands on this), but it would still be cool to see this team actually show up in a good adaptation. Can Fox pull it off?

Explore tags: Discussion, Movie News, Rumors

pj

the world keeps on getting shittier day after day.
http://www.williammize.com William Mize

It all starts on the page; with a great script (see Iron Man, Dark Knight, etc) and some stellar and inspired casting, it will be a great movie, not just a great "comic book" movie. I think it's great that Iron Man and TDK knocked the patina and gloss off the comic book movies and have allowed them to be more rooted here in our universe. Battlestar Galactica, and prior to that Babylon 5, did the same thing for the science fiction genre after the pristine cleanliness of The Next Generation. I'd love an X-Men reboot with some slight changes in casting and better scripts; it would be a great parable for our current times.
Matt

Fox should strike a deal with Marvel that puts Marvel in charge as much as possible and allows crossovers. They should know a lot of what wasn't liked was that the FF movies seemed to be targeted towards 10 year olds. There is 50 years of a fanbase out there who wants to see these movies made well. Commit to making them the way the fans want them (involve Marvel more) or don't make them at all. That or just let the rights lapse back to Marvel and go in another direction with other properties. Studios that own Marvel properties need to be careful - there is a large fanbase that wants to see these done well - and when they are not (FF, Daredevil, Spidey 3) there is critical and often box-office hell to pay (not Spidey - but the box office for each movie has moved consistently lower as hard core spidey fans who would see a good movie 5 times become disenchanted). Work more with Marvel or don't work at all is what I say.
Scott

F Fox
Sean

Good comment, pj. Fantastic Four has as much potential as Iron Man does/did. The problem is Fox. They have their heads soooooooo goddamn far up their own asses, this thing'll be lucky to get off the ground and running.
pj

@ 2 "I'd love an X-Men reboot with some slight changes in casting and better scripts; it would be a great parable for our current times." you my friend are insane
Shanice

As long as they get rid of Alba,then I'm game
Chris

I still have nightmares about those contact lenses.
L

The word "Reboot" needs to be banned from Hollywood's vocab... along with the word "Trilogy"
Pissed off Comic Fan

I dont get how you can reboot a movie that was JUST MADE!!!! Damn studios need to slow down making Comic Book movies and get good scripts, cast and a director. It pisses me off to see them REBOOT movie after movie after movie. Come back to these movies later.
http://www.williammize.com William Mize

#6: And you my friend, must be a Brett Ratner fan But seriously, I'd love to see more X-Men films. Some casting was spot on, and some was woefully uninspired. There are some great stories out there - for example, the Savage Land series would be brilliant, to quote a Guinness commercial. And you just can't go wrong with MORE SENTINELS. It's like more cowbell, only different.
filmkid

sorry but FOX should just leave Fantastic Four dead completely whats the point to reboot that movie. they dont even hire good screen writters and directors to do certain films. look who they have doing Dragonball Evolution director James Wong and screen writter Ben Ramsey. i believe they should just focus on rebooting Daredevil.
Julius

Chris makes the good and obvious point. Definitely replace the vapid Alba, and do what they should have done in the first place when they were screen testing: give it to either Rachel McAdams or Elizabeth Banks. Either of those two would inject a much needed edge, comedic sensibility (particularly Banks) and acting chops that Alba (god bless her beautiful looks) simply will never have. Oh, and definitely replace Chiklis too. My lord, that guy simply did not belong in the same film as the other three actors.
K

This could easily be an amazing franchise... Just need a good, darker script, cut out all the cheeze, get some talented actors and it's all golden. My two biggest issues with the majority of the Marvel/DC comcis being adapted area they are PG and full of cheeze. We need more DK and Watchment type flicks. However, that won't happen as long as the studios have their way. It's all about getting as many asses in the seats and the $$$. Which is unfortunate because a lot of times the result is a shitty movie. If they would have taken the time and effort and made a darker more adult movie, like the majority of the comic are, the audience (aka comic fans) would truly enjoy and appreciate. In my opinion the only comics adapted to flim that have got something to most right... Spiderman 2, X-Men 2, Ironman, Hulk (2008), Dark Knight and Watchmen. They rest have been either crap or ok, the ok being entertaining but not what they could have been or should have been.
http://cinemabeacon.blogspot.com/ Nekrosoma

Both Fantastic 4 movies were terrible, so new direction with new actors is the best logical choice. I just hope it will not be from the very beginning again.
Spider

I knew these franchises would eventually be re-booted, but not this early. YES, "Fantastic Four" has great potential to be as big as "The Dark Knight" and "Iron Man". I always thought that the grittier and sharper the story line the better. A darker FF would be great--this does not mean that every superhero flick should take the DARK route. "Daredevil" would also fare better in a darker setting BUT with better casting. Matt Murdock needs to have an edge to him that was missing in the flick (AND no sissy playground fighting). Like Hugh Jackman is to "Wolverine" and Robert Downey Jr was to "Iron Man", an inspired casting choice for Matt Murdock (sorry Ben) must be made first. "Daredevil" surely needs to be re-invented for the silver screen. If these flicks come to fruition, then maybe----just maybe, we'll see a new "Ghost Rider" down the line too. ***Note to Marvel: Please keep Mark Steven Johnson, Tim Story, and especially Joel Schumacher FAR away from these comic properties! ***And Fox needs to get their sh*t straight!
Chris H.

With Marvel heading for an onslaught of super hero movies eventually coming together in multiple Avengers movies, I think a reboot of the failed (or nearly failed) franchises are an absolute MUST. Daredevil absolutely needs to be rebooted. If anything to bring Kingpin back so Marvel can use him in other films, perhaps. Fantastic Four had a questionable cast to start with, although Jessica Alba was great to look at. It should be rebooted to fit the tone of the latest Marvel films, so that they can all eventually cross over to other films. The fantastic four is immensely important to the Marvel Universe. It must be done right.
SlashBeast

This is why they should just get it right the first time and invest some actual talent into the film. It's great that Iron Man and The Dark Knight have raised the bar on comic book films and we expect a lot more from them now. The Fantastic Four films were throwaway trash which was instantly forgettable. Studios need to take time and not just fire off all of these adaptions because they're popular now. A less cheesy tone and an intelligent script can save this franchise.
http://www.theaterhopper.com Tom Brazelton

I don't see why this needs a reboot except they don't want to pay the original cast any money to come back. I think Fantastic Four could be done better if they played up on the family aspect a little bit more. They hint at it in the movies, but there was so much exposition to get audiences caught up on, they never got into a comfortable groove.
http://Firstshowing.net The_Phantom

Actually this could be great... I think it would be better to have the same cast. I saw nothing wrong with it. The only thing I saw wrong with the movie is that Tim Story did a horrible job directing on how he wants his character. Dr. Doom, needs to be more threatening and challenging. Tim Story wanted to do the whole, "what would your life be like, if you got super powers." When it should of been more, "we have these powers, let's do something with these" attitude. And a better screen writer please. Oh yeah and make the movie up to 2 hours please. 1 hour and 15 minute action flicks don't seem cut it these days. Unless it's, "Shoot 'Em Up"
Darrin

dude all comic books have different paths, you cant make the movies like iron man
http://MYSPACE.COM/ESOPHUS JEFFREY

WHY GOD!
pj

@ 11 no im not really a bret ratner fan but i can see where you got that idea from. all im saying is we dont need a reboot of a film that came out in that past few years. all it is is studios trying to get us to spend money on non original ideas just because the original movies made millions. im not saying the originals were bad. im just saying remakes/reboots are not needed at the moment wait 10-15 years and then show me a remake.
ERivas

No....Just let it go.
D-9

Really? C'mon !!!
joe moms

Too soon to reboot this one. It's definately got a Jurassic Park III vibe.
Ajax

I'm not having a good week. First HMS 4, now this project. Please leave these franchises alone.
bassbin

just not what you want-why even post this shitty rumour
http://www.buzzfocus.com Link

Good luck Fox. Get 1) a better script 2) better direction 3) rid of Alba and then we'll talk about you taking my $10.25 I wish they could replace certain components of the franchise, I actually liked Chris Evans as Torch and Chiklis as Thing. McMahon (Doom) was ok, but it was more like "why is the guy from nip/tuck in this?"
Hey Ya

I didn't mind the cast for FF, save Jessica Alba who I love...her body at least, but the plot could definitely be cleaned up. The first was alright as an introductory story, but the second killed the idea of any continuation. They keep wanting to go too cartoonish. Now as for DD and Elektra, those just need to left alone. Fox needs to suck up the fact they suck at these adaptations and hand the reigns over to Marvel.
Al

jesus christ, so Green Lantern is gonna be Iron Man. Fantastic Four is gonna be Iron Man. the potential Superman reboot is gonna be Dark Knight. originality, is way over rated. Oh, and Watchmen made just 55.7 million? Last time i checked....thats a good number.
?????

Fox can not pull this off and Marvel should pay them to let the rights revert back to them. By that time, enough time will have passed for a reboot to be plausable. I personally like the Fantastic Four Movies, but I do think they have more potential then what was put on the screen.
Fisherr

Fantastic 4,rebooted? Hope it's a lot bigger than what they made before.
Fisherr

Fantastic 4 rebooted? Hope it's better than what was before.
Skeeter

@31 Exactly! The Dark Knight and Iron Man were so successful because of their originality, but people do love to chew on the same old thing. Fantastic Four needs to wait. It's been four years since the original, two since the squeal. Why not wait until audience forget how terrible these movies were (say 10-20 years down the road) and try something new?
Luis M

Maybe they just don't know how to call the fourth movie, if they didn't reboot the series. "Fantastic Four Four" sounds weird.
Josh

i dont think it is necessarily the director's fault these movies blow it is partially the awful acting from all four main leads AND the fantastic four just sucks in general as a type of story to be adapted to screen. it almost plays out as a kind of smart man's power rangers just my opinion
Film Fan

Two things. I agree, enough with the effin reboots. And reimaging. ESPECIALLY on a franchise barely 4 years old ("The Fantastic Four"). That said, that is one comic I would like to see redone one day. Because I think it's two of the worst films I've ever seen. Comic book related or otherwise. And I've said this before, but leave the "feel" of "Superman" alone. NO "Dark Knight".
L

If a reboot must be done, I think you need a fresh view by the director more than anything. As discussed with Iron Man, Favreau was always a comic fan and wanted to do his best to keep to the integrity of the original. He revitalized a washed-up actor like Robert Downey Jr. Just like Christopher Nolan's choice of Heath Ledger. I know every Batman fan was rolling their eyes in disgust (I along with them) when Ledger was casted. And here he is not only providing a far superior Joker to Nicholson's untouchable one, he received an Oscar... for a comic movie... posthumously! That is completely off the charts. And I liked Chiklis as Thing...
ClausVangaurd

I think it comes down to casting. If Iron Man or Dark Knight proved anything its you dont need a superstar lead. Sure Christian Bale and Robert Downey Jr. are stars now, but thats because their great actors who can carry a movie and be able to portray the characters. No need to cast a Jessica Alba to pull in an audience if the movies good people will come to see it.
Ryderup

Haha... ... why not reboot The Dark Knight and Watchmen? Aren't they getting old in Hollywood by now? Hollywood is eating itself up by all the remakes and rebbotts - get in some new blood into the theatre circuit!
fanboy d

i'd love to see someone like abrams of verbinski on an ff movie...
Mr j Money

Hate to say it because it wasn't that long ago, but: I liked the days when "Blade was Blade, Spiderman was Spiderman and X-men was X-men." each had their own identity and love em or hate em, you could take them at face value, not who directly influenced them. Why are execs trying so hard to emulate other flicks? remember the whole "bullet time" and "wire fighting" craze hollywood went through because of the matrix? How tired did that get? I challenge them to Re-invent the wheel! It keeps things fresh and pushes the envelope. This reboot crap is weak. If hollywood moves fwd with this Ironman, TDK emulation movement, it'll be like 'Panic at the Disco's' last album compared to Sgt Pepper. nuff sed.
zetsu

i totally agree the fantastic four films should get a reboot,the first film should be their origin & the villain dr.doom(i would like to see the mole man but i don't think he would bring in the audiences marvel or fox would like, just the hardcore fans).second film the frightful four.third film the coming of galactus (with him actually in the film this fucking time.)& the silver surfer.also crossovers with other marvel films to show they all share the same universe.(then maybe we will see one day spider-man,avengers,fantastic four & the x-men in a mega like civil war or secret wars movie,now that would fucking great.) i'm not sure who to cast or direct.
Rudy

Okay, I didn't even bother reading what every one else had to say on this blog cause PJ#1 said it all... I'm sorry if I didn't read everyones out of resepect for everyones opinion i apologize but you got to admit, that was priceless.... ha ha ha ha thanks for a good laugh
Oddzball

Fox probably will not be able to pull it off. For all of it's position as being the start of Marvel Comics as we know it to day, the FF is a mid level team that keeps being tossed up against the big bad Cosmic Menaces. These four folks really aren't in the same playing field as the sort of foes Directors THINK they have to face down. At the Marvel Fan level there's kind of a "We know they really aren't up to snuff for this sort of thing, but we'll agree to look the other way 'cause it's the Fantastic Four." Movie audiences won't handwave the inherent discrepancy of power levels so easily, the director pretty much has to spend a quarter to a full half the movie making it believable that these four can do this and that hurts the movie. Next Generation Trekkies do something similar. Data's brain is almost unreproducible so there aren't a lot of fully sentieent AI beings in the Trek Univers, but the damn holosuite spontaneously produces sentient illusions? The basic audience member doesn't come with preset dispositions. FF versus a bunch of Earth based super criminals would work, but Fox... I don't think Murdoch's people can get the stardust out of their eyes to turn away from epic save the universe stories. And based on Daredevil, they don't do gritty well either.
dave

oh noes !!! EVERY time fox puts out a superhero movie it has been pure shit, the only passable ones were x1 and x2 but they were still very weak.......fox please stop anal raping the movie going public sans lube, especially the die hard fanboys and comic book geeks who bear the brunt of your idiocy better yet if the moron fox execs are actually capable of learning anything set up a field trip to WB they know how to put their projects in the hands of truly talented people and let them do it their way instead of micromanaging the fuck out of every little thing that happens on set......im sorry did i go into a "i hate fox....DIE DIE DIE" rant again ? lulz
Tim "Cloverfield"

......(sigh)
Django

The lesson of re-boots is to be sure to give them enough time to let the memory of the previous incarnation fade a bit. Not to mention, be sure they have completely unique take on the existing property. Batman Begins did that. I'm not sure how much more unique a take you can have on "Cosmic Rays". So I think if they're to do a new film, have it pick up, perhaps later in their careers - maybe when Sue & Reed are living in cognito in the suburbs, in disguise w/ Franklin a' la John Byrne's Mephisto storyline. If they're to re-film the origin, to only alude to it via flashback(?) I'm smelling a Hulk-size re-flop here... Sometimes if its broke, it broke, and it shouldn't be fixed! If they really want to move forward with something unique, appealing, and with brand recognition - make a SILVER SURFER movie instead.
DinoChow

If Fox wants money, sell it back to Marvel and deal for a share of the gross.
LeeMan

The sequel just came out two fuckin years ago!!! and we thought the incredible hulk reboot was too soon...
Richard

Yeah I thought FF was actually descent, its a rather campy group anyway, the thing looked awesome, johnny blaze seemed perfect and in the last movie the Silver Surfer was pretty bad ass, I don't know what the big deal is, I also liked Daredevil alot myself, but didn't care much for Elektra or the first Punisher.
madstick

as long as fox is doing it....it's gonna bomb....i agree with # 50...sell it back to Marvel....they can handle it better than FFox
Dave Lister, J.M.C.

Let's face it, there's a lot of room for improvement. I just wonder how much better they'll actually make it.
NeoSlyfer

I am one of the biggest fans of the Fantastic Four, let me just say this in order for you to do the Fantastic Four one thing you have to realize they aren't AVENGERS, THEY AIN'T X-MEN , They are imagunauts first and Super Heroes First and a FAMILY! Reed Richards is the smartest man on Earth, not once did the 2 movies made me believe he was smart. Ben Grimm is a man we all love , a man of Heart and down to Earth with everyone . Johnny Storm is the Paris Hilton on the Team , cocky, light headed, but still knows how to save the Day, and Suzanne is the one that holds the team together. First thing they have to do, stop giving them FUCKING STREET LEVEL problems to solve. THEY ARE THE PREMIER COSMIC SUPERHERO TEAM ON EARTH. THey take on Galactus his heralds, Annihulus and Thanos as chores. What the fuck is a arm bandit to the FF. FOX Think BIG, FUCKING BIG, bigger than life stories, use that fucking imagination of yours. FAntastic Four should be like lost in space meets the Incredibles. NOT CAMPY!! Dr. Doom is single handely the most Baddest Villian in the Marvel Universe, Fuck other villians tremble when they hear DOOM. DOOM is a bastard but he is a man of honour, something the writers and Directors seem to forgot. DOOM SPEAKS IN THE FUCKING THIRD PERSON!! WHA THE FUCK FOX! DOOM IS POWERFUL, he single handely take on the AVengers and X-men . He should strike fear on screen not be a laughable relic of a badass. Just too much for Fox to correct. If they go the Dark knight Route with the darkness, but open up to the FF's world I will give it a go. FOX please go to MARVEL and read up on the Fucking thing!
Dan Walimaa

I like FF and FF2. I was looking forward to seeing the same cast get together for another go round. Too bad it won't happen now. I think they could have done a 3rd movie with the same cast and just made it a more grittier, serious and epic storyline. I think it's too close to the last movies to even think about doing a reboot. Maybe they should just leave it be for a while?
The Delightful Deviant

CGI the Thing, do not have Jessica Alba play the whitest white woman , don't make Galactus a freaking cloud, and do not tie the Silver Surfer's power to his board, and it will be alright.
Smiffy1

Make it darker, more adult and turn Doom into nobility that's pure evil and ladies and gentlemen F4 could kick ass.
Jamie

I agree with #3, unless Marvel have control Fox are just going to make another kid friendly pick and it won't be loyal to the comic.What Marvel did with"Ironman" & "The Incredible Hulk" was great. With having control there properties are being put onto the big screen the way they where meant to be seen.
somwerbtwnblungrn

I agree with #43 - stop saying everything needs to be an ironman or tdk!!! FF was not a good movie in the first place, plus the main reason they were added to most marvel comic storyline is the cliche that they bring, not because they were really a good set of superhero - they are some of the most omnipotent group in the Marvel universe - even though their powers are lame. There a lot of other good marvel storyline to follow, X-Men alone has tons of good plot & storyline.
Sniper skull

i do not think that a reboot should be a good idea for fantastic 4 daredevil and spider man 3 maybe oh and i dont think that we should be rebooting everything ,instead we should be thinking of new ideas thats not based on something good idea about cross overs
MR. FATE

This is getting ridiculous. It has become standard fare now to ask for a do over on the big screen. If a movie did not do that well, they simply wait a few years and "reboot" it. I can just imagine the conversation between people walking up to the theater now. Guy #1: Hey man, check it out, The Fantastic Four! Guy #2: Didn't we already see this movie? Guy #1: No... no... this one is better. Guy #2: It's the same characters right? Guy #1: Yeah Guy #2: Is there some new story? Guy #1: No Guy #2: Then whey would we go see it? Guy #1: Um..... well... there's a new direct... well.... they shot this one with.... nevermind. Guy #2: So then we can see Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3 instead right? Guy #1: Sure. Gimme a break already. Let bad movies die. At least wait until we have forgotten about them before trying to make us swallow the same garbage again.
Joe Bauers

Screw Fantastic Four, that shit was garbage. The comic was so damn boring anyway. They need to get it right and do a silver surfer movie; way more interesting. Seriously, is everyone at FOX retarded?? Do all these ideas come from one conference room full of retards picking their noses and trying to write their names on the wall with their own shit?? Where has all the quality gone?
bart

i think robert downey jr should play iron man and christian bale should play batman
bart

maybe johnny depp as Mr. Fantastic or Lee Majors
zac

lee majors was my favorite character in FF
bart

johnny depp as lee majors as mr. fantastic in a rendition of the fall guy....GOLD!
vu

I doubt I'm alone when I say that as for comic movies, F4 was one of my faves. Johnny Storm is my favorite comic book hero. I don't think they need to change anything. But money talks I guess. PS. I actually like F4 better than X men. Don't hate that's just my opinion.
http://www.firstshowing.net genegure

Waaaaaaaaaayyyyyy too soon for a reboot...give it another 10 years at least. And if they do make a new one it shoud be a lot darker, without all the cheese and a totally original story line. And how about mickey rourke as that big orange guy!!
Oddzball

Neoslyfer wrote That's the problem. The FF IS NOT a Cosmic Level team. They are too often treated as if they were. Individually Mr. Fantastic is about on Spiderman's level. Torch and Sue are a bit higher on the totem pole, about on par with the Vision. The Thing's another level up but well below Adam Warlock, Thor, Hulk, Iron Man or Captain Mar-Vell, They stopped Galactus the first time because the Watcher stepped in and helped. Every subsequent 'win' has been a contrived solution. Ideal oppositon for them would be the UFOES or the Wrecking Crew, manipulated by the machinations of Doom or the Mole Man.
Oddzball

Apologies to Neoslyer: the angle brackets I used to separate your comments from mine did not appear in the text above. ' My response was to his remarks that: "First thing they have to do, stop giving them FUCKING STREET LEVEL problems to solve. THEY ARE THE PREMIER COSMIC SUPERHERO TEAM ON EARTH. THey take on Galactus his heralds, Annihulus and Thanos as chores. What the fuck is a arm bandit to the FF."
GeeWindu

Well I hope they do a 3rd movie but only with the same cast! The first movies aren't Batman or X-men and weren't intended to be they are lighthearted and fun! I love the idea of them coming back for one more that would be really cool!