Fans think ‘Fantastic Four is going to bomb’ after...

Marvel fans have been left worried about the fate of the Fantastic Four following a comment from star John Malkovich. The actor, 71, will star in the upcoming Marvel movie: Fantastic Four: First Steps in an as-yet unspecified role. The blockbuster will mark the introduction of Marvel’s first family to the MCU proper, featuring Pedro Pascal as rubber-limbed scientist Reed Richards and Vanessa Kirby as Invisible Woman Sue Storm.

Image Credit: Metro [Mandatory Credit: Photo by George Pimentel/Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival (15121818ec) John Malkovich 'Opus' premiere, Sundance Film Festival, Park City, Utah, USA - 27 Jan 2025]

The film also stars Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/the Human Torch, and The Bear star Ebon Moss-Bachrach as hulking rock-man Ben Grimm/The Thing. Earlier this month, a teaser trailer gave viewers their first look at the heroes – which also featured a glimpse of the Being John Malkovich star amid the colourful action.

Image Credit: Metro [HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA - FEBRUARY 04: (L-R) Pedro Pascal, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn and Vanessa Kirby attend the Fantastic Four Trailer Launch at U.S. Space & Rocket Center on February 04, 2025 in Huntsville, Alabama. (Photo by David A. Smith/Getty Images for Disney)]

However, comments from the Con Air star has some worried that the studio might have a Galactus-sized flop on its hands. Speaking to Variety, the veteran actor described his experience on the set of the film – revealing that it promises to be quite VFX heavy.

Image Credit: Metro [BGUK_3142277 - Los Angeles, CA - Fantastic Four trailer teases Marvel???s First Family dynamics and super villain Galactus. Marvel has dropped the first trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps and fans have already been pouring over it to find Easter Eggs and hidden references. This marks the official debut of Marvel???s First Family into the MCU after Disney acquired 20th Century Fox and gained the rights to the heroes. Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach star as Reed Richards, aka Mister Fantastic; Sue Storm, aka the Invisible Woman; Johnny Storm; aka the Human Torch; and Ben Grimm, aka The Thing. The four friends begin as regular astronauts exploring space, but return to Earth with super powers and form one of the most iconic teams in Marvel history. Ralph Ineson plays the colossal villain Galactus, who has the power devour worlds. He appears at the end of the trailer and towers over Manhattan, which will likely become the first major test for the Fantastic Four. John Malkovich also plays a mystery character who shows up briefly although right now it???s unknown who he is playing. The cast also includes Natasha Lyonne, Paul Walter Hauser, Sarah Niles and Julia Garner as Silver Surfer, the famous herald of Galactus. The trailer sees the group suit up as astronauts before also showcasing their superpowers. Kirby???s Sue Storm is seen becoming invisible while Quinn???s The Humna Torch is shown bursting into flames and flying around the city while on fire. Pascal???s super intelligent Mister Fantastic doesn???t showcase his superpower, which is the ability to stretch his body to the extreme, in the trailer but is seen writing equations on a blackboard before sharing a kiss with Kirby. And Moss-Bachrach???s The Thing is seen with his rocky features. While ???The Fantastic Four: First Steps??? marks the official introduction of the superhero team into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, past takes on the characters were seen on the big screen in Fantastic Four (2005), Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007) and the reboot Fantastic Four (2015) when Fox owned the film rights. Last year???s Deadpool & Wolverine saw Captain America???s Chris Evans reprise his role as Johnny Storm from the first two Fantastic Four movies, while a variant of Mister Fantastic, played by John Krasinski, appeared in 2022???s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The Fantastic Four: First Steps hits movie theaters July 25, 2025. *BACKGRID DOES NOT CLAIM ANY COPYRIGHT OR LICENSE IN Pictured: John Malkovich BACKGRID UK 4 FEBRUARY 2025 BYLINE MUST READ: Marvel Studios / BACKGRID *BACKGRID DOES NOT CLAIM ANY COPYRIGHT OR LICENSE IN THE ATTACHED MATERIAL. ANY DOWNLOADING FEES CHARGED BY BACKGRID ARE FOR BACKGRID'S SERVICES ONLY, AND DO NOT, NOR ARE THEY INTENDED TO, CONVEY TO THE USER ANY COPYRIGHT OR LICENSE IN THE MATERIAL. BY PUBLISHING THIS MATERIAL , THE USER EXPRESSLY AGREES TO INDEMNIFY AND TO HOLD BACKGRID HARMLESS FROM ANY CLAIMS, DEMANDS, OR CAUSES OF ACTION ARISING OUT OF OR CONNECTED IN ANY WAY WITH USER'S PUBLICATION OF THE MATERIAL* UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com *Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*]

‘Of course, it’s a very odd experience because nothing is really there except giant screens and 18 epic cranes,’ the Red star said of the shoot. ‘It’s quite odd in that way, but it was fun. The cast was fun. We’ll see how it goes.’. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video.

Image Credit: Metro [The Fantastic Four: First Steps | Official Teaser]

Up Next. Writing on social media, fans shared their thoughts on John’s comments – and many felt it didn’t bode well for the film’s quality. ‘”We’ll see how it goes” doesn’t sound like he has too much confidence in it lmao,’ wrote dissidentwest on X.

Image Credit: Metro [Vanessa Kirby in The Fantastic Four : First Steps]

‘That sounds like a no-hope statement,’ agreed alex_de_large. ‘Maybe give actors something to actually act around and with? Built stages are actually very nice to look at,’ ruminated Dereksthoughtsx. ‘He’s hedging his bets 😭 Fantastic Four is going to bomb,’ bemoaned onBrandVibes.

Image Credit: Metro [Editorial use only. No book cover usage. Mandatory Credit: Photo by 20thC.Fox/Everett/REX/Shutterstock (516354cb) FANTASTIC FOUR, Jessica Alba, Ioan Gruffudd, Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis, 2005 'FANTASTIC FOUR' FILM STILLS - 2005]

‘So depressing. Will Marvel ever endeavour to make quality, grand scale productions? Or are they content with the laziest anti-art slop imaginable?’ asked demaris_webb. ‘Great more CG slop, Superman will be no different,’ predicted M7_Reaper. The film’s visuals have already attracted controversy after fans accused the studio of using AI to generate the film’s poster.

The speculation began when fans noticed that the same face appeared twice, and some of the people were missing fingers. While Marvel Studios has admitted to using AI before – in the opening sequence of its Disney+ series Secret Invasion – a representative told Deadline that AI wasn’t used on this occasion.

Fittingly enough, this marks the fourth reboot of the series – almost thirty years since B-movie producer Roger Corman first adapted the property into one of the worst superhero films of all time. Directed by Oley Sassone, this 1994 film went unreleased – having been made in a cynical move to prevent the studio’s rights from expiring.

Two further films were made by 20th Century Studios in 2005 and 2007 – Tim Story’s Fantastic Four and its sequel Rise of the Silver Surfer, which starred Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis as the superpowered family. The property was then rebooted in 2015 with an infamous flop directed by Josh Trank and starring Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Jamie Bell and Michael B. Jordan.

Directed by Matt Shakman, First Steps hopes to redress the balance – kicking off Phase Six of the MCU in style. Set in a retro-futuristic 1960s America, the film follows the four heroes as they attempt to protect their planet from a cosmic being known as Galactus.

In addition to its leading foursome, the film will also feature performances from Ralph Ineson, Julia Garner, Paul Walter Hauser, Natasha Lyonne and Sarah Niles. With this next phase of the superhero franchise promising the introduction of Fantastic Four nemesis Doctor Doom – to be played by Robert Downey Jr. in an upcoming sequel – the MCU’s future now rests on the success of its first family.

Cineworld is going all out for the release of Wicked, and we couldn’t be more excited. Fantastic Four: First Steps is released on July 25, 2025. Got a story?. If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.