The Original Fantastic Four Movie Series: A Look Back at the Missed Opportunity for a Third Installment

The Original Fantastic Four Movie Series: A Look Back at the Missed Opportunity for a Third Installment

The original Fantastic Four movie series starring Ioan Gruffudd as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic ended abruptly after just two films. Gruffudd recently reflected on the missed opportunity for a third movie in the early 2000s series. Despite the success of the second film, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, plans for a third installment fell through. Gruffudd praised his co-star Doug Jones for his portrayal of the Silver Surfer and expressed disappointment that the series didn't continue as planned. The films were distributed by 20th Century Fox.

In addition to Gruffudd, the original movies featured Jessica Alba as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Chris Evans as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, Michael Chiklis as Ben Grimm/The Thing, and Julian McMahon as Victor von Doom/Doctor Doom. Gruffudd fondly recalled working with Evans and praised his cameo in Deadpool & Wolverine as a beautiful homage to the character of Johnny Storm.

Following the original series, the Fantastic Four franchise was rebooted in 2015 with a film that was poorly received. A new iteration, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, was released on July 25, featuring Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn, Vanessa Kirby, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. Despite the setbacks of the past, the Fantastic Four continue to be a beloved superhero team in the world of cinema.