Biggest Fantastic Four Movie Mistakes The MCU Can Learn From

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is about to attempt to reboot the Fantastic Four yet again but to pull it off they will have to learn from some crucial mistakes. The Fantastic Four is a superhero group introduced in Marvel Comics back in the 1960s and remains one of the most popular character groups to this day among comic fans. Unfortunately, the on-screen adaptations of the gang haven’t done the stories justice and have been poorly received by critics and general audiences alike.

As the MCU prepares to hopefully breathe new life into a story that audiences have seen before and (by and large) have a negative association with, they will have a huge hurdle ahead of them. While some movies have been done over and over but still found success, such as the various adaptations of Spider-Man, so far Fantastic Four hasn’t found the same cinematic success. Despite the shortcomings of previous adaptations, the MCU has a fantastic track record and a loyal fan base, so if they rectify these four mistakes, then the upcoming movie has a real shot at being a smashing success.

The CGI Must Be Excellent

The MCU has taken heat recently for special effects and subpar CGI. With Fantastic Four it’s even more important that the MCU nails their CGI to create compelling visuals, especially for Reed Richards and The Thing. In past Fantastic Four movies, the CGI has easily been one of the biggest detriments to the film and the MCU is clearly capable of pulling out amazing effects. This is not only a chance for the MCU to redeem itself with CGI and special effects alone, but it would be a strong tool to help set the next Fantastic Four apart.

Ben Grimm’s The Thing is made out of a rock-like substance, which is difficult to translate to the screen, but Marvel appears to have nailed it with characters like Korg in 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok. They could easily use the same effects to finally make The Thing appear more realistic. They have also briefly tackled Reed Richards’ powers with the John Krasinski version in Doctor Strange 2. Stretching the human body appears to be an extremely difficult feat to create, even with CGI as there is an impossible hurdle of making something entirely unrealistic still look like a human being. Hopefully Marvel Studios at least recognizes this issue and will find ways to improve the effect on screen.

Doom Needs Room To Shine… Or To Be Cut Completely

Admittedly, villains have never been the strong suit of the MCU. However, if they are hoping to save a movie that has been rebooted too many times already, they will have to knock it out of the park when it comes to the villain that will fight The Fantastic Four. Doctor Doom is reportedly not the villain of the upcoming movie, though it hasn’t been officially confirmed. Doom is one of the most compelling and interesting villains in the comics, but unfortunately, he hasn’t yet been done well. Most notably, 2015’s portrayal of the character by Toby Kebbel was particularly weak, and many critics even believed it to be one of the worst comic book adaptations of all time.

If the MCU chooses to bring back the infamous villain for the upcoming film, he will need to be well-scripted and perfectly cast. However, Marvel could choose to go a different route and cut Victor Von Doom completely. One mistake that every Fantastic Four reboot has made thus far is keeping the same villain with nothing new or exciting to add. But in the comics, the Fantastic Four frequently fought Namor, the main antagonist that recently made his debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Choosing to adapt a Namor storyline could be fresh and exciting for audiences and maintain the crossover storylines that MCU moviegoers love.

It Doesn’t Need To Be An Origin Story

While not everyone has seen every Fantastic Four movie, many moviegoers and superhero fans have. It is difficult for any franchise to reboot the same story over and over as audiences will quickly grow tired of stories they already know and with the last reboot being as recent as 2015, the MCU definitely doesn’t need to make another origin story for The Fantastic Four. Some argue that the team hasn’t gotten a proper origin story yet due to none of their previous movies succeeding and that skipping The Fantastic Four origin story is a mistake, but regardless if it was done well or not the story has already been told.

Even Kevin Feige himself has heavily implied that the next Fantastic Four won’t be an origin story. Audiences already know what is going to happen, more or less, which is why skipping an origin story could bode well for the upcoming film. The MCU can easily repeat its strategy with Spider-Man by providing a new, fresh story that provides context to the origin when needed but doesn’t rehash a tired storyline.

Sue Storm Needs To Be More Than Reed’s Girlfriend

Sue Storm is an awesome and powerful character that hasn’t been given the time she deserves on screen. As the only female member of The Fantastic Four, she hasn’t been showcased in a way that highlights all that her character is capable of or even given much personality. Especially in Jessica Alba’s portrayal, she was often relegated to Reed’s girlfriend in more of a supporting role rather than a superhero in her own right.

Marvel has been working hard to bring dynamic, complex female superheroes to the big screen, and giving Sue Storm a larger role in Fantastic Four could be another way they could strengthen the odds that it will be a successful movie. In the comics, Namor and Sue Storm form a romantic relationship that kicks off Namor’s villain to hero story arc, so if the MCU chooses Namor as the villain in this adaptation it could certainly be a new twist for Sue’s character that hasn’t been explored before. It remains to be seen what the MCU has up its sleeve for this latest reboot, but audiences remain hopeful that they will learn from past mistakes to finally bring The Fantastic Four to life.