Simon Kinberg recently weighed in on the epic failure that was the Fantastic Four reboot and admitted it was not a good movie. On top of that, he expressed that the studio still has interest to move forward with the sequel to that mess that would be “much brighter in tone and truer to the comics.”
Is it a good idea to make a sequel to something that so gravely underperformed?
In my opinion, yes.
1- It’s the Fantastic Four- That movie was a disaster in regards to direction, script, and editing but what worked? The cast. Those four actors are a ball of talent and I had no issue at all with them playing these heroes. I actually quite enjoyed their interactions with each other and that beautiful natural chemistry between them. Did they pick the right Doctor Doom? Hell no. Thing looked liked a rejected blow-up sex doll from the Matrix trilogy.
2-No More Reboots- If people are feeling superhero fatigue, I’m feeling reboot fatigue. There haven’t been that many, I know, but with Fantastic Four just having been rebooted last year, I just don’t care to see a new cast brought in when the original cast wasn’t all that bad! Fox has already somewhat successfully convinced everyone that X-Men Origins: Wolverine never happened and erased The Last Stand from existence with Days of Future Past, so is a reboot really necessary for the super family? I’m also big on rooting for an underdog and I’d love to see these actors redeem this title as a great member of the comic book movie golden age.
3-The Stories- Something that Fox has struggled with is getting the real essence of this comic book. Yes, the family element is huge and something the reboot missed the target on by leaving it more a bromance between Reed and Ben. They can and will certainly build on that in a sequel but the thing I think they’re missing most? “The thrill of imagination and discovery.”
The Fantastic Four has had some amazing storylines where the science fiction feels almost like it’s Interstellar. I remember an issue in the Ultimate Fantastic Four series where each of them was in the same location at a different point in time. That was awesome!
I don’t know how others felt about it, but the Future Foundation was a series I hold close to my heart with just an incredible presentation of imagination as well. Did the horror approach in the reboot work? No. But I think there is a path for the Fantastic Four on the cosmic/ trippy/ science fiction direction that would be incredible if Fox could get it right.
4-Galactus- Incredible and iconic villain. Even if you don’t read comic books you can recognize who this guy is and his famous herald the Silver Surfer. Should they make the sequel a redone version of the original’s sequel? Maybe not. But Galactus as a space fart cloud did not work and if Fox holds the rights to this character, and the Silver Surfer, and Dr. Doom- still an iconic villain in all Marvel Comics, then get it right people!
5- The Larger Universe- I don’t know how the legal stuff works but it’s safe to say that just because certain characters appeared in the Future Foundation doesn’t mean Fox can use them. Even though that’s odd to me considering both Fox and Marvel could use the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. Anyway, I would love to see some influences taken from the Future Foundation to help grow the Fantastic Four world. Alex Power, aka Zero-G from the Power Pack popping in? Yes please. Of course Spider-Man is out of the question so likely so is he but Valeria and Franklin? I think they bring something so extraordinary to the franchise and I’d love to see Reed and Sue not just married but as parents and dealing with those two very unique children. Ultimately, with three crappy movies, I think it’s safe to say we don’t really know the beauty of the Fantastic Four yet.
Gabriel A. Pino 