The Fantastic 4: First Steps
Short description
Set in a retro-futuristic world inspired by the 1960s, this science fiction adventure follows Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm. The group must manage their internal family tensions and personal relationships while acting as superheroes to protect Earth. They face a significant threat from Galactus, a hungry cosmic deity, and the Silver Surfer, who serves as his herald. The conflict becomes personal as Galactus attempts to consume the entire planet and everyone on it.
The film was produced by Kevin Feige through Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige Productions, with a screenplay by Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, and Jeff Kaplan. It is the second film directed by Matt Shakman, following his 2014 movie Cut Bank. The main cast features Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn, Ralph Ineson, and Julia Garner. The production involved 650 credited crew members and 72 credited cast members.
With a budget of 200 million USD, the movie earned 522 million USD at the worldwide box office. It received generally positive reception, holding a rating of 7.2/10 from critics. Audience reception was slightly lower, with a score of 6.8/10 on IMDb based on 253,000 votes and a 6.9/10 on TMDB from 3,892 votes.
What's left behind the scenes
- Although actor Joseph Quinn likes Chris Evans' version of the Human Torch from the "Fantastic Four" and "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" films, he sought to create his own image.
- Joseph Quinn shaved his head for filming in the action movie "Under Fire", so he wears a wig in this film.
- To create the robot Herbie, computer graphics were used in conjunction with a wooden animatronic puppet controlled remotely.
- The main characters travel to space on the Excelsior rocket, which was called the Marvel-1 in the comics.
- Screenwriter Jack Kirby spent his childhood in the Jewish quarters of New York, which is reflected in the film's sets.
- Like Stanley Kubrick when working on the film "2001: A Space Odyssey" in 1968, Matt Shakman strived to maximize the use of practical effects.
- Pedro Pascal, who played Reed Richards, specifically observed octopuses to study the movements of their tentacles.
- According to director Matt Shakman, casting Reed Richards was the most difficult task, as the character was to undergo a long journey: from a pedantic scientist to a true family man and later a leader of the Avengers. The director was looking for an actor who could fit all these stages.
- Pedro Pascal, who played Reed Richards, turned down participation in filming the horror film "Tools" for this movie.
- Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm was filmed using motion capture technology to create a digital character and computer graphics. Before filming, Moss-Bachrach consulted with Mark Ruffalo, who played Hulk in the same way in Marvel Cinematic Universe projects. When working on Grimm's appearance, the special effects artists specifically studied the appearance of stones.
- The filmmakers were inspired by the television series "Star Trek" (1966-1969) and the Spider-Man films by Sam Raimi while working on the film.
- According to Vanessa Kirby, she adores the character of Sue Storm, and therefore, during preparation for the role, she studied the character so deeply that she began studying quantum physics as a result.
- In 2020, it was announced that John Watts would direct, but he left the project in 2022. He said that after producing "Spider-Man: No Way Home" under the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, he was very tired.
- Although John Malkovich was featured in the first trailer, scenes with the Red Ghost as played by him were cut from the film. The scenes with Malkovich were to be at the beginning of the film, detailing the early years of the quartet's superhero lives, including their battle with the Red Ghost and his team of super-monkeys. According to director Matt Shakman, Malkovich's character initially fit organically into the film's plot, but the scenes were later removed because they started to stand out from the overall storyline.
- The Creature and Silver Surfer were created using computer graphics and motion capture technology.
- According to director Matt Shakman, the post-credits scene was filmed by directors Joe and Anthony Russo. They joined the work on the scene during the filming of 'Avengers: Endgame'.
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