One of the leading actors of the 2005 Fantastic Four movie gets candid about the mixed reception to the Marvel adaptation. One of the most famous superhero groups to have been reimagined multiple times on the big screen is Marvel’s First Family, as 2025 marked the introduction of the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline.

However, before the MCU’s iteration in Phase 6, there was the Fox-Marvel era in the early 2000s with Tim Story’s two installments, Fantastic Four and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. For many general audience members who didn’t follow the comics, Fox’s Fantastic Four movies were how they were introduced to the iconic Marvel team.

In a new interview with Collider, Michael Chiklis, who played Ben Grimm, a.k.a. The Thing, in both of Story’s Fantastic Four movies, reflected on the legacy of the short-lived Marvel franchise, along with the reception from fans and critics. In Chiklis’ opinion, many unfairly “maligned [the] films.” But Chiklis stressed that there was a lot of support from the audience, stating the following:

There were a lot of people, I think, critically who got it wrong. They really maligned our films, and they were very underrated considering… they were very loved by the audience. It was one of those cases where critics weren’t great to those films, but the audience was, and that still remains. I’ve always sort of quietly gone like, okay, say what you want to say, but the people see it. And now all these years later, people are sort of acknowledging like, hey, these films are family-friendly, fun movies… they got a lot right. They may be imperfect, but they’re really good movies.

We made three quarters of $1 billion, those two movies. So, you know, all those people can’t be completely out of their minds, you know what I mean? Thank you for telling me that. It means a lot to me. In response to fans who grew up with his version of Ben Grimm and what Fox’s Fantastic Four films meant to them.

What Michael Chiklis’ Fantastic Four Comments Mean

It’s crucial to remember that back when Fox put out the Fantastic Four movies, the MCU didn’t even exist, as Hollywood was still incredibly cautious about bringing superhero and comic book stories to the big and small screens. Throughout the 2000s, many superhero adaptations went for a grittier tone, whereas the Fantastic Four movies were, as Chiklis pointed out, incredibly family-friendly.

Even if they garnered mixed responses, the first two Fantastic Four movies are better remembered in comparison to 2015’s Fantastic Four, which went in the opposite direction with a very dark and grounded interpretation, showing how one should not adapt these characters. Having some campiness is natural for comic book properties, which is what the 2000s’ Fantastic Four films were able to accomplish.

That’s even why The Fantastic Four: First Steps movie is resonating more with fans, as Marvel Studios leaned into what makes the characters as beloved as they are in the comics. Even if everything in Fox’s Fantastic Four films wasn’t handled the best, there is still so much fans love about those movies to this day, which says a lot about their legacy.

Our Take On Michael Chiklis’ Fantastic Four Comments

Hearing Chiklis’ thoughts on his Fantastic Four movies all these years later goes to show how much that role meant to him, and what it means to hear from fans who love what they did in the Fox films. The MCU even paid homage to Fox’s Fantastic Four franchise when Chris Evans got to reprise the role of Human Torch in 2024’s ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine.

Whether or not Chiklis and the other Fantastic Four actors will get a chance to return down the line remains to be seen, but it would be fun to see them all reunited at least once during The Multiverse Saga. Hopefully, whether it’s in Avengers: Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars, fans will get to experience Fox’s Fantastic Four one more time.