FINALLY! We are all so much closer to the Fantastic Four reboot this franchise so clearly deserves. As for their choices in the cast, judge for yourself!
First off, Reed Richards AKA Mister Fantastic will be played by Miles Teller (right). He is most notable for his roles in Project X, Divergent, 21 & Over, and That Awkward Moment. Personally, I think he’s a little young to be playing the mature, genius Reed Richards and I haven’t seen him in any films outside of 21 & Over and Project X where he plays those immature party boys. I have my reservations as to whether or not he can portray a decent Reed Richards but I won’t cut him down yet since I haven’t seen him play a more serious role. There is still yet hope.
Secondly, his wife-to-be, Susan Storm AKA The Invisible Woman will be played by Kate Mara (left). She is known for her roles in House of Cards and American Horror Stories. I, personally, have not much to say about her on the matter since I am not familiar with her work. All I can say is that she too looks quite young to be having the “Big Sis” persona Sue Storm has.
Michael B. Jordan has been confirmed for a long time to be the wise-cracking Johnny Storm AKA The Human Torch. For those of you that don’t recognize him, you can see him in Chronicle, That Awkward Moment, and Red Tails. Thankfully, I can definitely imagine him playing the lighthearted playboy, Johnny Storm, and it would actually fit quite well. As for the race issue, I would say I’m slightly disgruntled. Before I continue, I’d like to say I would be equally upset if he was Asian, even though I’m Asian-American. I really understand the need for diversity and the fact that most of these comic book superheroes were Caucasian doesn’t really make room for that diversity, but I don’t see anyone brave enough to make a non-Caucasian Clark Kent or Bruce Wayne. Since The Human Torch isn’t a major superhero icon, I guess Fox gets a pass on this one. Other than that, like I said before, I can definitely see him fill the role as the comedic Johnny Storm and they could easily add in that he and/or his sister were adopted.
Finally, we get to the newest turn of events: Ben Grimm AKA The Thing played by Jamie Bell. He has had a role in Jumper, The Eagle, Defiance, and probably has the most experience in action films. I wouldn’t get too hung up on his build not matching the Thing’s since that can be fixed via CGI. He had come into the role relatively quickly compared to the other three. He has a decent track record as an actor and might be able to really bring Aunt Petunia’s favorite nephew (that’s how the Thing refers to himself) to life, though I feel a lot of his success depends on the writers (at least more so than the others).
All in all, I am disappointed in their choices for these roles for Fantastic Four but I’ll still willing to give them a chance. These characters look way too young for the roles they’ve been given. Â Miles Teller hasn’t convinced me that he can play the serious and mature role that Reed Richards demands, and Jamie Bell needs to have that corniness that makes the Thing so lovable (when it’s not clobbering time, that is). I can’t say much about Kate Mara, being unfamiliar with her work, but that in itself is somewhat of a downer for me. I’d say the best character match they did was with Michael B. Jordan as the Human Torch. I’ve seen Jordan take on those funny roles and he does them well, not to mention he’s a pretty good-looking guy (no homo) so he has the playboy thing going for him. Physically, let’s face it, none of them match the looks of the Fantastic Four but that won’t matter much if they can get the personae.
So my final judgement? I’d say the new crew looks good, but not fantastic. I would love nothing more than to be proven wrong. Bring it on, Fox!
Sources: Bleedingcool
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