The Fantastic Four: First Steps will introduce the Silver Surfer and Galactus in the MCU, and the respective actors for each role have shared their experiences working with their CGI and practical costumes on set. The processes obviously worked, as the duo has received widespread praise for their character designs and portrayal.
In fact, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a smash hit with critics already, a small group of whom were able to see an early screening of the film. Praise is generally lavished on the main cast for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, but the Silver Surfer and Galactus have also earned their fair share of appreciation.
It should come as a welcome response to Ralph Ineson and Julia Garner, who portray Galactus and the Silver Surfer, respectively, and shared with ScreenRant‘s Ash Crossan what it was like donning their outfits for the movie. Thankfully, their overall experience was positive, though each exited the experience with reflections on how they could have felt more comfortable.
ScreenRant: Now the Galactus suit is quite practical, and a lot of the sets are practical. Did you get to execute my dream of stomping through in a mini city?
Ralph Ineson: Not exactly, because I was sH๏τ as a miniature myself. They sH๏τ me on a white set, bathed in lots of bright white light so that the image [could] be blown up and maintain its focus to create this amazing cinematography of the giant Galactus. Honestly, I forgot how we got on that.
ScreenRant: Oh, I asked if you got to stomp through a mini city.
Ralph Ineson: Oh yeah. So, no–not in the way you’re thinking. I was the miniature and they sH๏τ me like that and then used CGI for that. But I did get to stomp around a white set with lots of white boxes to replicate the buildings and things like that.
ScreenRant: Well, that’s kind of fun.
Ralph Ineson: Yeah, it was amazing. It was just amazing to wear that suit and operate it.
ScreenRant: I was talking to Kevin Feige earlier and he was talking about what he loves about the Fantastic Four, and how it’s not shying away from what people may have considered silly in the comic books [in terms] of their looks. But they’re not silly; they’re freaking cool. So, I’m curious what your favorite thing about your Galactus look was.
Ralph Ineson: So many things, but I think my favorite part was the gauntlets because I could almost roll a cigarette in them. Every joint of the finger [was] articulated. It was so usable and wearable and I could do almost anything I needed to do in it. Even though it was huge and cumbersome, [it was] so well-designed that it completely left me free to do my job.
ScreenRant: That’s so cool. What was your favorite thing about your look? I mean, I can’t imagine what it looked like on set versus what it [turned out to be.]
Julia Garner: It was all mocap, wires, a helmet, and orthopedic shoes. That was the reality. But then, obviously, [with] whatever they did in post, they made it look the opposite of that.
ScreenRant: If you could travel back to your first day on set, what would you tell yourself?
Julia Garner: Oh, that’s an interesting question.
Ralph Ineson: Get some good knee supports, because that costume’s heavy, and your knees are going to start to hurt after a couple of weeks of wearing it.
ScreenRant: That’s good advice.
Julia Garner: On the first day, maybe not put my helmet so тιԍнт. I’m going to wear it for a long time. That’s the first thing that comes to my mind.
What Ralph Ineson & Julia Garner’s Costume Comments Mean For The Fantastic Four: First Steps
The Methods To Depict Each Character Have Been Successful
The use of practical effects has overall been a boon for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, as it earned plenty of praise for its aesthetics. Proponents have pinpointed the retrofuturistic elements as a positively fresh direction for the MCU, and the designs of the movie’s antagonists have no doubt played a large role in that.
It seems that The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ filmmakers have successfully navigated the use of both practical and CGI effects to deliver the best possible renditions.
Ralph Ineson and Julia Garner were also under additional pressure with their respective characters for different reasons. The last time Galactus was portrayed on screen, it was not well-received, as Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer depicted him as a comics-inaccurate space-cloud, leading to an outcry for a depiction that embraced his distinctive look from the comics.
Garner, meanwhile, was targeted for her gender, with a certain subset of fans decrying the absence of the more well-known Silver Surfer, Norrin Radd. The expertly rendered result for Shalla-Bal, however, has been highlighted as a positive of the movie, which should hopefully ᴀssuage detractors upon seeing the results for themselves.
Shalla-Bal becomes the Silver Surfer in an alternate universe in Marvel Comics, but is traditionally Norrin-Rad’s love in Marvel Comics’ Earth-616
It seems that The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ filmmakers have successfully navigated the use of both practical and CGI effects to deliver the best possible renditions. The fact that both actors enjoyed their experience – which is often a rarity for larger-than-life character adaptations – is a huge plus that allowed them to focus on their characterizations.
Our Take On Ralph Ineson & Julia Garner’s Galactus & Silver Surfer Costume Comments
I Hope Their Positive Experiences Will Lead To Further Appearances
It is important that actors enjoy their time on set, particularly if there is to be a chance of them reprising their roles down the line. For example, Alan Cumming, who portrayed Nightcrawler in 2003’s X2, was famously dissuaded from reprising his role due to the arduous process of donning the heavy makeup for filming.
Now that technology and processes have developed so much in the intervening years, it looks as though Ineson and Garner haven’t been forced to the same conclusion. Depending on the fates of the characters in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, I hope this leads to another appearance from the two in a future MCU installment.