Fantastic Four: A Design Nightmare That Almost Destroyed Marvel Fans’ Childhoods!

Anticipation is high for the MCU’s Fantastic Four reboot, but new concept art reveals some intriguing character designs for the team’s earlier movies.

Newly revealed Fantastic Four concept art reveals several wildly original takes on Marvel’s Ben Grimm, AKA The Thing. While Reed Richards, Sue Storm, and Johnny Storm all look like standard people while not using their superpowers, Ben, the fourth member of the Fantastic Four, is burdened with always sporting his hulking, rock-covered physique. While this doesn’t cause any problems on the pages of Marvel Comics, such a unique look creates design questions that each live-action movie team has answered differently in the four Fantastic Four movies so far.

Following in the footsteps of the filmed but never officially released Fantastic Four (1994) – which is available to stream on YouTube – Fantastic Four (2004) used practical effects to turn actor Michael Chiklis into The Thing. Later, Fantastic Four (2015) went all digital. Now, new concept art from Jerad Marantz (via Instagram) reveals several bold takes on the hulking hero for an undisclosed Fantastic Four project.

Marantz doesn’t plainly specify that these designs were for Fantastic Four (2004), but given that he states the work is from 2009 and that it wasn’t for the 2015 movie, it’s likely he was working on a movie for the team that never made it to production. Moreover, given the bold silhouettes represented, this version of the character would have almost certainly been created with special effects and not a practical suit.

Will The MCU’s Fantastic Four Reboot Use A Practical Suit Or Special Effects For The Thing?

Both Approaches Have Boons And Banes

Michael Chiklis as The Thing in Fantastic Four looking off-screen

While the cast of Marvel’s The Fantastic Four reboot has been met with excitement, the illustrated image that accompanied the news means it’s still unknown if Ben Grimm will be practical effects, CGI, or both. However, looking at the MCU’s past efforts indicates that special effects will likely be the choice. The closest comparisons to The Thing so far in the MCU are Hulk and Thanos’ henchman Cull Obsidian, and both were fully digital. It seems likely that actor Ebon Moss-Bachrach will play pre-transformation Ben and then do voice and motion capture after that.

Moreover, Moss-Bachrach implied as much when appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live, saying, “We’re past [practical suits]; I think it’s a little kind of cosplay kind of, you know, it’s a little amateur, that stuff, now with the technology we have. So yeah, I think it’s mostly performance captured – motion capture, performance capture.” While Moss-Bachrach may be a bit off the mark about practical suits not having a place in modern superhero movies, it’s hard to argue that a CGI Ben Grimm won’t offer the MCU’s take on the Fantastic Four a bit more flexibility.

Related Posts

Keanu Reeves Surprises Alexandra Grant with a Stunning $254K Supercar – A Gesture of Love That Will Leave You Speechless!

Keanu Reeves, the beloved and humble actor known for his roles in iconic films such as The Matrix and John Wick, has always captivated the hearts of…

DAVID MUIR REACHES PEAK STYLE WHILE REPORTING ON WILDFIRES?!

Wildfire Broadcast: When News Meets Fashion It all began at a wildfire scene in California, where David Muir appeared to deliver live coverage of one of the…

David Muir heads to Texas to report on floods, but the world is only fixated on… his superhero biceps!

When ABC News anchor David Muir arrived in Central Texas to report on the catastrophic floods that claimed over 120 lives and left communities reeling, viewers expected…

David Muir’s Emotional TV Moment Sparks Speculation: Did He Reveal a Personal Truth?

On a recent broadcast of ABC’s World News Tonight, anchor David Muir, a trusted face in American journalism, delivered a moment that left viewers and the studio…

Karoline Leavitt Shocks The View with On-Air Clash, Allegedly Ousts Whoopi Goldberg Amid Explosive Trump Affair Accusations.

In a jaw-dropping moment that has sent shockwaves through daytime television, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt allegedly orchestrated the dramatic ousting of Whoopi Goldberg from The…

Karoline Leavitt’s Savage Takedown of Gold-Digger Trolls: “Double the Money, Zero Shame!”

In the swirling vortex of political drama and social media snark, few figures have faced as much public scrutiny as Karoline Leavitt, the youngest White House Press…