Lots of Fantastic Four news milling about today…Entertainment Tonight shows an early preview, while HNR obtains several pics of The Thing in costume…I’ll admit, Ben Grimm’s look is growing on me, even if he still seems a little Toxie.
Category: Marvel
Undercover Latverian.
Superhero Hype! posts what’s purported to be the first official pic of Victor Von Doom in Fantastic Four, but all I’m seeing is a guy in a suit. Please don’t tell me they’re foregoing the mask…that’d be the worst costuming decision since Willem DeFoe’s static faceplate in Spiderman. Slightly more promising are these new pics from Batman Begins, which include Ken Watanabe as Ras Al Ghul and Tom Wilkinson as a mafioso.
Feeling Rock, Seeing Spots.
In comic casting news, Laurie Holden (a.k.a. Marita Covarrubias of The X-Files) is rumored to have been cast as The Thing’s fiancee Debbie in Fantastic Four (Debbie? I take it she’s pre-Alicia Masters, who may be played by Kerry Washington of She Hate Me.) And Simon Pegg, whose praises I was just singing as Shaun of the Dead, may be up for Rorschach in The Watchmen. Ooh, that’s a great idea.
Invisible Touch.
As The Fantastic Four begins shooting, USA Today posts this shot of Jessica “Honey Daniels” Alba as the Invisible Woman, and SuperHeroHype has kindly scanned in the rest of the cast. I must admit, Alba looks more like the character than I originally suspected — indeed, she may be the closest fit of these four: Ioan Gruffudd’s Mr. Fantastic looks too young, Chris Evans’s The Human Torch looks nothing like Johnny Storm, and Michael Chiklis’s Thing…well, I’m thinking Peter Boyle in Young Frankenstein at the moment. Update: High-quality versions of all four are now up.
Looking Grimm.
Comics2Film procures a handful of set shots from The Fantastic Four, including a few fuzzy snaps of Michael Chiklis in Ben Grimm makeup. It’s probably not fair to judge his look from these pics…but, um, I hope they’ve got some serious post-production work planned for The Thing before FF comes out.
The Talented Queen Ripley.
Sigourney Weaver as Emma Frost? It probably won’t happen now that Bryan Singer’s X3 team has moved to Superman, but that would’ve been fun casting.
The Doom of Man.
Word is Julian McMahon of Nip/Tuck will be Victor Von Doom in the forthcoming Fantastic Four. Never seen Nip/Tuck myself, but his headshot looks the part.
Stretching his Chops.
Uh-oh. Ioan Gruffudd remarks on landing Mr. Fantastic of The Fantastic Four, and it sounds like (a) he’s not familiar with the character and (b) he hasn’t read the script. Schweet. Meanwhile, Lancelot’s lord and liege, Clive Owen, talks up his own comic adaptation, Sin City.
It’s not easy being green.
Jack Black as Green Lantern? No, no, no, no, no. Bryan Singer’s team on Superman Returns sounds like a step in the right direction for DC, although I’m annoyed that it means they’re off X3.
Invisible Touch.
Marvel’s Fantastic Four has been rounded out with the signing of Jessica “Dark Angel” Alba as Invisible Girl. Well, she’s not what I pictured at all, but I guess she’s no worse than Ray Liotta as Doctor Doom. I’ll reserve final judgment until I’ve seen some footage, but I fear this flick will be more Hulk than X2/Spidey.