The Marvel Cinematic Universe started over 17 years ago with the release of Iron Man. Since then, the mammoth franchise has spawned 34 movies and numerous TV series. And yet, it's taken until now for Marvel's first family, the Fantastic Four, to be introduced into the fold.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps premieres in July, marking the debuts of Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing, and Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman. Check out the trailer:
Reed Richards already made a brief cameo appearance in the franchise during Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but the character was played by John Krasinski. For the MCU's central team, he's played by Pedro Pascal, because of course he is. Over the years, Pascal has collected big franchises like Infinity Stones, appearing in everything from Game of Thrones to The Mandalorian to The Last of Us, DC, and now Marvel. Hollywood casting directors are so original!
But before Pascal was cast, a number of amazing actors threw their hats into the ring. This includes former Doctor Who star David Tennant (who played the best version of the Time-Lord, in my humble opinion). In a recent Q&A during MCM Comic Con in London, Tennant explained that he "would've quite liked to be Reed Richards" in the MCU. "I'd quite like to be able to do all that... Even though it's going to be a while before there's another go at that, unfortunately," he said, per Entertainment Weekly.
There's no bad blood between him and Pascal, of course; Tennant is a huge fan. "If it has to be someone, I'm very happy for it to be Pedro Pascal, frankly," he said. "He's Mister Fantastic, in every sense of the word! I think Pedro Pascal is great. I'm very, very pleased that he exists."
Funnily enough, Tennant already had his own foray into the Marvel Cinematic Universe when he played the villain Killgrave in Netflix's Jessica Jones show. His mind-controlling villain was one of the most popular characters in the series, and fans are holding out hope that he can return sometime in the future. Looking back on his journey, Tennant is immensely satisfied with playing Killgrave: "[I] got the best one."
I'm sure Pedro Pascal will do a perfectly satisfactory job as Mister Fantastic. Marvel's The Fantastic Four: First Steps premieres in theaters on July 25.
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