The Fantastic Four have had a contested cinematic history, but not everything about the first three major live-action movies starring Marvel’s first superhero family is bad. One of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s most H๏τly-anticipated releases is the upcoming Fantastic Four: First Steps, which will be the third incarnation of the team in live-action. The mᴀssive hype surrounding the film is sure to overshadow the previous Fox versions, but the first three movies still have elements worth appreciating.
Admittedly, there is a lot wrong with every Fox Fantastic Four project. It’s not a stretch to say that a lot of aspects of the 2000s Fantastic Four movies have aged poorly, from the failure of the series’ villains to the blisteringly fast pacing. 2015’s Fantastic Four arguably fails even worse, fundamentally misunderstanding the core concept of the team and their familial dynamic. With that said, there is a certainly level of charm to these early attempts at adapting The Fantastic Four, especially the first two films.
10
Chris Evans’ The Human Torch
Came Back For A Good Reason
One interesting facet of the early 2000s Fantastic Four films is the presence of Chris Evans as The Human Torch. Today, Evans is far better known for his role as one of the MCU’s flagship characters, Captain America, who couldn’t be more different from Johnny Storm other than being a superhero with a blue costume. True to his moniker as The Human Torch, Johnny is H๏τheaded, impulsive, immature, and annoys the rest of the team to no end, particularly The Thing.
Evans’ performance is perfect at capturing this persona. In particular, Johnny Storm’s relationship to Benjamin Grimm is perfectly encapsulated in the early movies. Johnny’s antics and chemistry with his grumpy big brother figure is endlessly entertaining, and even on his own, Chris Evans steals almost every scene he’s in throughout the Fantastic Four duology. It’s no wonder that the MCU chose to bring Chris Evans’ The Human Torch back for a cameo in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine.
9
Michael Chiklis’ The Thing
By Far The Most Compelling Character Of The Original Films
Another casting choice that knocked it out of the park in the first two Fox Fantastic Four movies is Michael Chiklis as Benjamin Grimm, a.k.a. The Thing. Of The Fantastic Four, The Thing is by far the most negatively affected by the newfound powers granted to him by the cosmic rays, becoming a monstrous humanoid being made of nigh indestructible rock and stone. Chiklis is amazing both as human Benjamin Grimm and The Thing, acting his heart out through many layers of restrictive makeup.
It’s no wonder that Stan Lee allegedly stated that Chiklis’ The Thing is his favorite movie interpretation of one of his characters ever.
Michael Chiklis does a perfect job of capturing the tragedy of Benjamin Grimm, the heart and soul of the team whose life is objectively ruined by his superpowers. His iconic gravelly voice is so great that even today, one can’t help but compare the recently revealed voice of Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s The Thing negatively to it, becoming the default mental voice for the character when reading the comics for many. It’s no wonder that Stan Lee allegedly stated that Chiklis’ The Thing is his favorite movie interpretation of one of his characters ever.
8
Stan Lee As Willie Lumpkin
Canonized Lee’s Cameos
Speaking of Stan Lee, the legendary Marvel creator’s cameos in the Marvel films using his characters is always a heartwarming element of going back to early films. Before Stan Lee’s cameos in the MCU, he spent plenty of time showing up in the likes of Fox’s Fantastic Four films, a clever wink and nod to audience members in the know. Following his pᴀssing, Stan Lee’s appearances in the early films feel even more special.
The Fantastic Four movies do something even more endearing with Stan Lee’s cameo appearances. Rather than simply showing up briefly as a random unnamed bystander, Stan Lee actually plays a named character, Willie Lumpkin, The Fantastic Four’s affable mail carrier. Willie Lumpkin is a real character from the comics, and it’s amazing to see one of the few times in which Stan Lee got to play a character he created from the pages of one of his own books.
7
The Silver Surfer
The Fox Movies Captured A Conflicted Alien Perfectly
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer introduced a new character to The Fantastic Four’s dynamic, the тιтular Herald of Galactus. Norrin Radd, a.k.a. The Silver Surfer, is an alien being who, in the film, has his homeworld held hostage by the planet-smashing Galactus in return for finding him new planets to devour. For all its faults with actually portraying Galactus, infamously turning him into a giant angry purple cloud, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer does a great job with the Silver Surfer himself.
In the movie, the Silver Surfer is treated with a mixture of fear and awe that’s fitting of his ethereal cosmic nature, making for an intriguing presence in the world. The combination of Laurence Fishburne’s voice and the body work of experienced mime and contortionist Doug Jones are a winning combination for the character. Perhaps Fantastic Four: First Steps is going with a different take on the Silver Surfer, the female Shalla-Bal, because the 2007 film already did such an incredible job with Norrin Radd.
6
The Original Blue Costumes
Sleek, Simple, And Effective
Both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and earlier Fox movies have fumbled various classic superhero costumes, from the busy designs of the former to the uninspired leather motorcycle outfits of the latter. Despite how uncomfortable the early 2000s Fantastic Four movies were with many of the campier or sillier aspects of making a comic book adaptation, one area in which they weren’t afraid to go all-out with source material accuracy was the wardrobe. The suits of every Fantastic Four member in the first two films simply look phenomenal.
Before the plague of over-designed MCU costumes gripped superhero movies, the Fox Fantastic Four movies knew to keep things simple, but effective. The sleek, sweeping lines, dark colors, and bold “4” insignia don’t fix what isn’t broken, looking like they effectively stepped out of the pages of a comic book. Even after a first glimpse at the white-and-blue costumes of Fantastic Four: First Steps, these original outfits are still some of the best movie Fantastic Four uniforms.
5
The “Say That Again” Memes
A Hilarious Refrain From The 2015 Movie
Compared to the 2005 and 2007 movies, 2015’s Fantastic Four doesn’t have as much to unironically appreciate. One beat from the film that has aged like fine wine due to the sheer unintentional comedic gold it has since produced, however, is one of the last scenes in which The Fantastic Four finally get their name. While discussing a team name, Reed Richards hears Benjamin Grimm call their new circumstances “fantastic”, prompting him to stop and ask him to “Say that again“.
The 2015 film was obsessed with finding contrived ways to explain the presence of popular catchphrases or nicknames from the comics, from Dr. Doom’s тιтle being a joke about Victor’s bleak personality to “It’s Clobbering Time” being something Ben’s older brother would say before ᴀssaulting him. This final explanation is the most hilariously contrived of them all, and has since inspired hundreds of memes doing the same gag for other properties. If nothing else, at least the 2015 movie gave audiences this ill-informed bit.
4
The Power Swapping Gimmick
Added An Interesting Twist On The Fantastic Four’s Powers
After getting their powers as early as 15 minutes into the first film, it’s safe to say that the abilities of The Fantastic Four may have gotten old quickly by the time of Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. Perhaps as a way to alleviate this, and in response to Chris Evans’ rising star power as Johnny Storm, the sequel decided to give The Human Torch a unique twist on his cosmic-empowered abilities. After an encounter with The Silver Surfer, Johnny finds himself able to copy and swap powers with the other members of the team.
For all the second film’s faults, it can’t be said that it wasn’t trying new things.
This ends up leading to some creative and fascinating moments, such as The Thing getting to return to his human form once more and The Human Torch going to face Doom alone with the combined powers of the entire gang. This gimmick was an interesting way to show just how well-suited to their own powers each of the team was, with Sue terrified and unable to control her flight after absorbing Johnny’s flames and Johnny aghast at having absorbed The Thing’s monstrous body. For all the second film’s faults, it can’t be said that it wasn’t trying new things.
3
The Body Horror Elements
An Interesting Inclusion For The Josh Trank Movie
It’s safe to say that Josh Trank didn’t have the finest understanding of what makes The Fantastic Four work as a concept, but he does understand how to merge superpowers with horror elements. His previous film, Chronicle, was a great working thesis statement of such abilities, but he was able to apply them in an interesting way in 2015’s Fantastic Four as well. Here, The Fantastic Four’s powers are often terrifying and confusing, even for their own users, exploring an element of the mythos that the earlier films wouldn’t touch.
The team’s powers manifesting in horrific ways has some surprising precedent in the comics, from the horrific shapes Mr. Fantastic sometimes ᴀssumes to The Thing’s stony scabs being chipped away, leaving exposed skin. Trank leans in heavily to these elements, making Reed Richards’ stretching look unsettlingly realistic and Johnny Storm’s “Flame On” state look like a burning corpse. 2015’s Fantastic Four wasn’t good for much, but the body horror elements are still frighteningly effective.
2
The Inclusion Of Alicia Masters
A Valuable Member Of The Fantstic Four’s Supporting Cast
Part of what made the first two Fantastic Four movies special was the relationship between Alicia Masters and Benjamin Grimm. Taken straight from the comics, Alicia Masters is a blind sculptor who falls in love with The Thing despite his unorthodox look, finding him to be a handsome hunk of rock through touch alone. The two have a heartwarming relationship that balances nicely against the rest of The Thing’s hardships, particularly in the live-action movies.
Kerry Washington does a fantastic job as Alicia Masters, nailing the mannerisms of a blind person while not being defined by her disability. Her subtle teasing of Johnny and gentle treatment of The Thing despite his stony exterior are both welcome additions to the story. The movies even tease the future appearance of her step-father, the supervillain Puppetmaster, in a scene that would have paid off in the canceled third Fox Fantastic Four movie.
1
The Thing’s Practical Effects
Still Look Astonishing Even 20 Years Later
For as much attention and devotion as the first two films paid to The Thing’s characterization, none of it would have worked without a convincing design for the nigh-inhuman Fantastic Four member. The Thing is certainly not an easy or straightforward comic character to adapt to live action, usually drawn as quite a cartoony creature with his four-fingered hands and mᴀssive brow ridge. But somehow, Fantastic Four managed to unleash an eerily good live-action design for The Thing using entirely practical effects.
The SFX work used on Michael Chiklis in the earlier Fox movies is nothing short of astounding, looking comic accurate enough while still being a feasible living being. It’s incredible just how well Michael Chikils was able to emote through the layers of prosthetics, still a believable illusion even two decades later. It’s an impressive statement that the practical version of The Thing can still compete with or even surpᴀss the CGI designs of the more recent Fantastic Four movies.
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Captain America: Brave New World
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February 14, 2025
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Thunderbolts*
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The Fantastic Four: First Steps
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July 25, 2025
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Spider-Man Homecoming 4
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