Marvel's Fantastic Four: Everything We Know So Far

Marvel's next super-team may have its leader. After months of speculation, Marvel Studios is reportedly in talks with Pedro Pascal to play Reed Richards in the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot. Though Marvel has yet to confirm the news, multiple outlets (including Deadline) reported that sources close to negotiations can confirm that the deal is nearly done.

As the star of HBO's The Last of Us and Disney's The Mandalorian, there's already a fair amount on Pascal's plate. The in-demand actor will appear in Ridley Scott's Gladiator sequel next year, as well as Ethan Coen's Drive Away Dolls. "He’s a part of some spectacularly successful things," his longtime friend and fellow actor Sarah Paulson told Esquire earlier this spring. "Sometimes in those situations, the show is the superstar. It’s really exciting to see that he is the thing that is becoming the superstar out of this."

The story of Marvel's first superhero family follows a group of scientists who are blasted with cosmic rays during a mission to outer space. The experience grants the team superhuman abilities, including Mister Fantastic's (Reed Richards) elastic body, Invisible Woman's (Susan Storm) invisible force fields, Human Torch's (Johnny Storm) body of flames, and The Thing's (Ben Grimm) powerful rock exterior.

The upcoming Fantastic Four film was originally announced by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige back in 2019, with Spider-Man: No Way Home director John Watts helming the project. But Watts stepped down to take a break from superhero films after the third Spider-Man entry, and he was replaced by WandaVision's Matt Shakman. The film has also been through the hands of many creatives on the writing side, including Palm Springs' Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer, with rewrites from Foundation's Josh Friedman.

No other Fantastic Four member has been announced just yet, but it was rumored that Marvel was eyeing Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning's Vanessa Kirby for Susan Storm and Stranger Things' Joseph Quinn for her brother Johnny Storm, AKA the Human Torch. Neither have been confirmed. The film is currently scheduled for release on May 2, 2025. With a little luck, we'll be calling Pedro Pascal "Mr. Fantastic" in no time.

From: Esquire US