10 Things The MCU’s Fantastic Four Can Do Better Than Previous Fox Marvel Movies

Marvel’s Fantastic Four has the opportunity to correct some key mistakes of past films featuring the iconic superhero quartet, with the very real possibility of being the best Fantastic Four film ever made. Recently, more details about Marvel’s Fantastic Four were released, including the primary cast, full title, and key hints as to the style and elements the film may incorporate. Compared to the many missteps of The Fantastic Four’s movies released underneath the 20th Century Fox Banner, the MCU is already shaping up to unleash the best version of the characters audiences have ever seen.

Previous movies featuring The Fantastic Four suffered from a host of issues. Way back in 1994, the very first Fantastic Four movie faced budgetary constraints that ultimately prevented the film from ever being released in theaters. Meanwhile, 2007’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer nearly caused Jessica Alba to quit acting, while the 2015 remake suffered from a litany of re-shoots and studio meddling, resulting in an uneven mess. Hopefully, the Marvel Cinematic Unvierse will be able to learn from and avoid the fallout of these tribulations, improving upon franchise like never before.

10 The MCU Can Lean Into The 60s Sci-Fi Aesthetic

No previous film has acknowledged the team’s pulpy origins

Compared to other Marvel Comics properties, The Fantastic Four are undeniably characterized by their origins in the 60s. The team’s inherently pulpy adventures going up against villains like Mole Man and Doctor Doom works too well for the art style of the time period, with even the Four’s superpower origins feeling like something out of an early science fiction story. It seems as though the Marvel Cinematic Universe may be leaning into this aesthetic, with released key art of the characters suggesting the film will be either a 60s period piece or be heavily influenced by the era.

9 The MCU Can Do Galactus Better

The franchise has already depicted world-ending humanoid beings

In 2007’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Fox Studios took a crack at an on-screen depiction of Galactus, The Fantastic Four’s famous world-devouring alien villain. However, rather than a massive imposing humanoid in his signature purple armor, Galactus was boiled down to little more than a sentient purple cloud of space dust, an underwhelming depiction to say the least. On the other hand, Marvel has already demonstrated enough bravery to bring massive humanoid aliens to life with the Celestials of The Eternals fame.

8 The Fantastic Four Can Have A Better Familial Bond

No previous film has quite nailed the team’s wholesome core

More than anything else, The Fantastic Four are defined by being not just a superhero team, but a literal family. Other films have made some efforts to demonstrate this, but the characters of the 2005 and 2015 films never fully got to the point of feeling like an actual family, focusing more on bickering and infighting than a genuine sense of familial love. The MCU has a great track record for strengthening the attachment between their characters, with excellent moments of bonding like Avengers: Age of Ultron‘s party scene, painting a hopeful picture of the upcoming Fantastic Four’s family dynamics.

7 The MCU Isn’t Afraid Of The Fantastic Four’s Sillier Side

The franchise has never shied away from comic book nonsense

The Fantastic Four in Marvel Comics have a lot of holdover features from the comics that may have felt a little too silly for earlier adaptations to consider implementing. Inclusions like the lovable robot sidekick H.E.R.B.I.E. or the team’s goofy trademark flying vehicle, the Fantasticar, will feel more at-home in the more imaginative MCU, despite being tiptoed around or straight-up forgone in previous films. Unlike Josh Trank’s gritty 2015 reboot, the MCU won’t be afraid to lean in to The Fantastic Four’s more lighthearted side.

The MCU’s Doom can terrorize much more than the Four themselves

Both depictions of Dr. Doom offered by Fox’s previous Fantastic Four films fell flat when it came to conveying the character’s overwhelming presence from the comics. Rather than being a self-taught mastermind relying on his own combination of magic and technology, both films instead simply had him gain powers from the same cosmic accident that created The Fantastic Four, turning him alone evil for poorly-explained reasons. The MCU has the chance to truly represent Dr. Doom, taking advantage of and terrorizing the already-existing world full of magic and technology for him to weaponize.

5 The Fantastic Four Can Characterize The Silver Surfer Better

2007’s Herald of Galactus left much to be desired

Despite being a crucial player associated with The Fantastic Four and being Stan Lee’s favorite Marvel character, The Silver Surfer got the short end of the cosmic surfboard when it came to development in his sole movie appearance. Doug Jones and Laurence Fishburne’s co-op performance as Silver Surfer spent far too long as a villain, rushing the character’s growth from distant alien observer to invested humanitarian hero at the very end of the film. The MCU has many excellent examples of long-term character development, hopefully offering a better arc for Norrin Radd.

4 The Fantastic Four Can Do More Actual Crime-Fighting

Previous films have The Fantastic Four do shockingly little hero work

Despite crime-fighting and climactic battles being a core conceit of the superhero genre, The Fantastic Four movies have a startlingly low average number of action scenes. 2005’s Fantastic Four essentially only had two action scenes, and Josh Trank’s desire to tell a moody body-horror origin film first and a comic book movie second came across clearly in the 2015 reboot’s reluctant approach to its final battle. Luckily, the MCU has many amazing action scenes, one of which has even already featured a version of Mr. Fantastic, suggesting the most exciting on-screen hero work of any Fantastic Four movie yet.

One of Marvel’s most powerful characters might finally get to show up

In the comics, Franklin Richards is the son of Reed Richards and Susant Storm, inheriting his own staggering, reality-altering powers. One of the most powerful humans in the Marvel universe, Franklin Richards has yet to show up in a Fantastic Four film, with none of the existing movies having enough time to develop Reed and Sue’s relationship to the point of becoming parents. Considering the MCU’s longevity and recent string of younger, successor characters like Kate Bishop, Skaar, and Ironheart, Franklin Richards may finally be getting a live-action appearance.

2 The Fantastic Four Can Do Reed Richards And Sue Storm Justice

Mr. Fantastic and The Invisible Woman never got properly translated

Actors like Chris Evans, Michael B. Jordan, and Michael Chiklis have all contributed impressive performances, nailing the personalities of the hot-headed Johnny Storm and the gruff, yet sensitive Ben Grimm. Unfortunately, Reed Richards and Susan Storm haven’t had as successful depictions, with names like Miles Teller and Jessica Alba never quite embodying the characters’ dynamic or crafting a believable romance. Luckily, the cast of Marvel’s Fantastic Four is promising, with veteran actors Pedro Pascal and Vanessa Kirby being promising names to take up the mantles of Mr. Fantastic and The Invisible Woman.

1 The MCU Will Finally Have The Fantastic Four Connected To More Heroes

The Fantastic Four aren’t as fun existing in a vacuum

The Fantastic Four don’t work as well in disconnected universes where they’re the only heroes. Between going up against world-ending threats like Galactus, recruiting other Marvel characters like She-Hulk to the team, and Reed Richards’ formation of the Illuminati, seeing the effect The Fantastic Four’s activities have on an already superpowered universe is fairly central to their comic storylines. Getting to see the team interact with more MCU characters just may be the single most exciting thing about Marvel’s Fantastic Four that the other films were never able to explore.

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