Fantastic Four movie me-boot

I finally took the plunge and went to see the recent, Josh Trank-directed 'Fantastic Four' movie. It was pretty much just as bad as people have been saying, but I'm pretty sure that if he'd tried making a 'People Go to Another Dimension and Come Back Changed' movie rather than a 'Fantastic Four' movie, he would've nailed it.

Unfortunately, he DID try to make a Fantastic Four movie, and the results missed the mark by some margin. That seems to be happening a bit lately, and I don't think I'm being too much of a fanboi by wondering why studios are so intent on re-imagining characters like Peter Parker and Superman to be so distant from the source material that made them so popular in the first place.

But while I've been a huge fan of Superman and Spider-Man in the past, I was even more a fan of the Fantastic Four back in the day, and seeing the characters wasted like this really got my juices going. I've already talked a bit about the Fantastic Four comic that I would want to write, but here's my window to pitch the Fantastic Four movie I would make.

The idea here is that, faced with the failure of their latest attempt at an FF film, Fox called me up and offered me a chance to take over the franchise (likely done as a dick move to keep the rights from reverting back to Marvel, but whatever). So with the recent version barely out of theaters, and with an intent to hew closer to the tone that made the comic so popular, here's my pitch for Maybe Productions version of the Fantastic Four.

There is a caveat before I get started, though. It is my intent to stay true to the source material, and that means I have to accept that there are some elements that must be included in any FF movie, even if they were done (and done well) in previous attempts. Fer instance, There has to be an element of Ben Grimm learning to cope with his monstrous appearance while Reed struggles to find a cure. So even though the 2005 Tim Story film did a pretty good job of showing that, I won't ditch the idea for the sake of being different. I believe there's room for originality while still sticking to these timeless elements, and it's the writer's job to find new ways of exploring the same content.

Big picture-wise, there are two things that have to be in any Fantastic Four movie.

First, I think the entire world is in agreement that the Fantastic Four work best as a family. Despite the fantastical events shaping their lives, their personal quirks and interactions are so immediately recognizable that it keeps their adventures relatable even while they're battling world-eating spacemen.

And that's the second thing that needs to be in an FF film. Not Galactus per se, but a grand scope of unbelievable science and fantasy. If I could, I'd totally sign up Steven Moffat to write the script. You may be familiar with his work as some of the best Dr. Who stories in recent decades, and his grasp of grand scope vs. intimate moments is exactly what a good FF script calls for.

What the Fantastic Four movie DOESN'T need, though, is another origin story or another attempt at Dr. Doom. Certainly the former needs to be touched on to explain the premise, but if Reed and the crew aren't exhibiting superpowers by minute 15, I've missed my mark. As for Doom, he's one of Marveldom's greatest villains and trying to share time introducing him alongside the Fantastic Four and their supporting cast is doing him a great disfavor. He could certainly appear in a sequel where the main characters have already been introduced and more time can be spent on him, but he's Doom! Nothing short of his own solo film would do him justice before integrating him into a future FF film.

But that's for the future. Right now, we're dealing with my FF launch film, and with Dr. Doom out of the equation, I'm going to turn to the shape-shifting alien menace of the Skrulls. Beyond your basic alien invasion, the Skrulls offer a whole 'nuther level of story as they infiltrate the Earth and possibly have been for decades. It's the Red Scare on a cosmic scale. Leaning back on Dr. Who, if you're familiar with the Silents, you have an idea of what I'm going for.

So how does this play out? Glad you asked.

Act I

NORAD alarms are going off the hook as an object is detected entering Earth orbit and targeting upstate New York. Military forces move to intercept and manage to down it in an unpopulated area. To their surprise, it turns out to be a rocket ship holding four humans: Reed Richards, Ben Grimm and Susan and Johnny Storm, all who had disappeared after a failed rocket test in 1968.

Guess it wasn't such a failure after all, but an unexpected side effect of Reed's experimental warp drive kept them out of the action for 50 years. Spending that much time in a warp dimension, though, has altered the four crewmen. Their fantastic powers aren't completely apparent from the start (Ben, fer instance, is still human looking when he exits the capsule), but they start to develop when the military moves in to apprehend them. Confused by what has happened to them, the four agree to go with the authorities.

Meanwhile, it's become obvious to some that their attempt to delay Earth's interplanetary capabilities by sabotaging Dr. Richard's prototype all those years ago wasn't as successful as they'd hoped. The alien Skrulls are now faced with proof that Earth has functioning intergalactic space travel and the hidden menace must move up their timeline to absorb the Earth into their empire.

Act II pt 1
The military tries to debrief the Fantastic Four, but Reed is in control. His main concern is the changes that are overcoming his friends, especially the disfiguring nature of Ben's transformation. The whole program is derailed, though, when several members of the government team are revealed to be shape-shifting alien infiltrators who attempt to assassinate the quartet. Their now more fully-developed powers come to their aid, letting them defeat the aliens while exposing the hidden conspiracy.

No longer willing to stay as guests of the military, the quartet moves to Reed's old mothballed lab in New York. It exposes them more to public scrutiny, but it gives Reed access to equipment he needs.

Act II pt 2

The Four have an interesting time trying to adapt to the modern world, with family members long gone, technology far in advance of what they knew, and the media still trying to get a good look at the foursome and their fantastic powers. Reed makes some progress in analyzing the Skrull tissue, and the aliens seek to silence him. Because the assassins didn't work, the Skull empress turns to her greatest warrior, Kl'rt. This Super Skrull is not only able to take on their likenesses, but can mimic their powers as well. The fight is great, but ends with Reed making a breakthrough in unmasking the aliens. Using a device inspired by his efforts to reverse Ben's transformation, he is able to cancel the Super Skrull's transformation abilities, robbing him of his powers.

Act III
Reed is able to adapt his device to broadcast around the world, neutralizing Skrull shape shifting across the globe.  Everywhere, green-skilled aliens are unmasked and the infiltration is broken.  Unfortunately, this forces the Skrulls into Plan B, Forced Conversion. A cluster of Skrull destroyers arrive in orbit to conquer the Earth by brute force. With Reed's guidance, Earth forces are able to hold them off long enough for him to figure out a solution. Combining his device with Skrull technology taken from his foes, Reed can not only cancel out the aliens' abilities, but can trigger them remotely. It's a simple matter to transform all Skrulls in range into harmless creatures (like cows), ending the alien invasion and likely preventing any future return from the Skrulls.

The Earth is saved and the Fantastic Four are global heroes.

Cast
Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic
Jamie Bamber

This is a guy who is not only smart enough to develop a functioning warp drive, but ballsy enough to fly it himself. In his earlier publishing days, he was a pretty manly scientist, alternating between developing portals to other dimensions while threatening to knock Ben's block off if he didn't stop moping. Jamie Bamber convinced me he could play an intelligent combat leader/astronaut in Battlestar Galactica, and with the added maturity he's gained since, I'm even more convinced he's my Reed.

In this movie, his intellect was miles beyond his 1960s contemporaries, but seeing what the 21st century has available to him has put him in Heaven. Rather than playing catch-up, he takes an immediate grasp on modern technology and starts projecting beyond it. It's not humbling enough that he's able to make a de-evolution ray, but that he does it with technology everyone else also has access to is what elevates his mind above all others'. 

His is a hard power to put on film, I think. The effects in the Tim Story film never looked less than goofy, and, as Chris Evans said, kind of gross. I much prefer the effect we saw in Elasti-Girl (from 'The Incredibles') or the sadly limited use we saw in the Josh Trank movie. These characters lash out and whip around rather than being all sinuous and snakey which I think works best for a live-action human.

Sue Storm/Invisible Girl
Brie Larson

Yes, I want to start Sue Storm as Invisible Girl (rather than Woman), because I want to see her doing the most growing up during the story. Looking back over the run of FF comics, I think Sue's best characterization is how she started off as this meek young girl with a mad crush on Reed and became a badass chick in the years to follow. 

I first noticed Brie Larson in '21 Jump Street' (but since learned she was in Scott Pilgrim which I also really liked). In Jump Street, she played the perfect blend of sensible yet rebellious and impressed with her ability to play a high school student but with an added layer of maturity. I think she can totally nail the arc between young girl and monster beater.

Of all the four, she's the one who feels the most impact from their time in stasis. Reed and Ben didn't have much family (aside from a time-traveling Nathaniel Richards and ol' Aunt Petunia who I just now decided should still be alive, the tough old bird). Sue, however, at least had a mother and father whom she misses dearly. I suppose Johnny would miss them too, but he's much better at hiding those feelings...

There's nothing too challenging about putting Invisible Girl's powers on the screen. FX artists have been making people invisible and generating force fields for generations. I don't want to see the the 'coruscating energy' playing over the surface like in recent attempts, but rather limiting it to a faint outline and highlights (like a bad chroma key effect) when we really need to see where she is or what's interacting with her force field. 

Ben Grimm/The Thing
Jared Keeso

Ben and Reed go way back, and a lot of ink could be spent on describing how these two completely different people became such good friends. Ultimately, Ben benefits from being a self-made man who dug himself out of a Brooklyn gang to become a top Army pilot and NASA astronaut applicant. He's so comfortable with himself, that he never felt threatened by Reed's intelligence and was one of the few people who didn't hesitate to call out the emperor on his new clothes whenever Reed started overthinking things or distancing himself from real life.  After the change, this same self-confidence goes a long way to helping Ben cope with his transformation.

Keeso first caught my eye as looking a lot like what I imagine Ben Grimm looks like, but his performance as the loyal partner cop in the Canadian police drama '19-2'  (although you probably saw him as the parachute jumpmaster in 'Godzilla') cemented him in my mind as the perfect counterpoint to Reed. To be honest, Keeso is about 10 years younger than Bamber, which would complicate their mutual college background if this weren't fantasy Hollywood and we couldn't just make Jamie Bamber look a little younger on film.

Since we don't spend any time with Ben before the accident, I'd like to have his transformation happen more slowly. He can emerge from the crash as handsome Jared Keeso, but the initial fight with the Army causes some notable swelling and discoloring. Using his strength seems to accelerate it until he's soon completely orange and lumpy by Act II and full on rocky by the final battle. This would call for an evolution of practical costuming turning to CG. Although initially horrified by his changes (as any true Ben Grimm story should have), he accepts it on condition that it makes him more able to protect those he cares about and with a promise from his best friend that he'll find a cure. One thing I'll make clear, though, is that he's not made out of rock. Sure his skin is a rocky texture, but it shouldn't look like a pile of rubble.

Johnny Storm/Human Torch
Callan McAuliffe

Johnny Storm is Sue's brash little brother and skirts the edge of rebellious as the story progresses. Give any teenager the high-flying powers of the Human Torch and see how conformist he becomes. Add in the lack of parental oversight and Johnny could easily tip into delinquency if it weren't for surrogate big brother Ben Grimm on hand to talk him back based on his own childhood experiences in a Brooklyn gang.

Beause I'm looking for a younger Johnny Storm, I went to Callan McAuliffe, a young actor who first impressed me in the drama 'Flipped.' He later turned up in 'I Am Number Four' where he got to have some action scenes, and I realized he'd do a fine job of showcasing the fine line Johnny walks over the course of this story as he learns the responsibility of his powers.

Credit where due, Josh Trank and his crew really nailed the Torch look. I like the darker core with the brighter, burning corona, and the way the throws his fireballs rather than jets fire from his hands adds some cool motion to the character.

Kl'rt/Super-Skrull
Richard Armitage

As a member of the Skrull warrior caste, Kl'rt is unhappy with all the hiding and creeping about his empire has been doing in the name of 'invasion.' He thinks they should just obliterate the humans in a grand show of power and take what they want. He is a loyal warrior, though, and must acquiesce to his Empress' wishes. He doesn't hesitate to express his feelings on the subject, though, and is actually quite happy with the turn of events that leads to him being unleashed on the FF.

You may or may not recognize Richard Armitage as the dwarf king Thorin Oakenshield in 'The Hobbit.' Don't let his performance there fool you, though, as Armitage is actually over 6' tall. Imagine all of Thorin's intensity but in his proper, towering frame. That's what the Fantastic Four face when the greatest of all Skrull warriors comes barreling down on them. Also, he's no stranger to working in prosthetics, so that's a plus.

Because we've already figured out all the special effects with each individual member of the Four, they can just copy them over to Kl'rt. The shape shifting is a new effect here, but it's been done so many times, I don't doubt it can be done with a truly organic appearance. 

Veranke/Skrull Empress
Jessica Chastain

To be honest, I just cherry-picked Veranke from the recent(-ish) 'Invasion' series at Marvel. There are other characters who can be used as the Emperor of the Skrull Empire, but I think a female leader would contrast well with Kl'rt and help distinguish them beyond all their Skrully prosthetics. In the comics, Veranke had a religious calling to conquer Earth, and I thought that lead a nice distinction to any other, more generic "conquest for the sake of conquest" invasion. 

Jessica Chastain dominated a group of SEALs in 'Zero Dark Thirty' and that same interaction will be called for here when she must keep her top warrior Kl'rt in line. Also, she apparently doesn't mind being bodycast, so the prosthetics should be no sweat.

Because her conquest is a religious calling, she truly wants to bring the humans into the fold and doesn't want to use forceful conquest. When humanity defies them, though, it's their own fault and she almost seems sad to order the decimation of Earth and enslavement of the humans. Almost.

Future Expansion
Franchises are all the rage and I think there's room to expand the FF universe. Altough I actually really like them in their own world, not combining with the Avengers or X-Men, there's still plenty of characters in their circle to warrant future films. 

Dr. Doom I mentioned earlier that Dr. Doom should get his own film, and I see one which maintains him as the despotic ruler of Latveria. This Doom would retain the mystic knowledge he inherited from his mother, but would combine it with his advanced scientific knowledge. These disciplines wouldn't be separate sciences, but rather fully integrated, like laser pentagrams or bio-alchemistry. 

In his solo film, Doom would be reunited with the love of his life, Valeria, only to learn that she was in league with a group of rebels causing troubles in his nation. Of course mention will have to be made of the fate of his mother, doomed to Hell and enslaved to the demon Mephisto, as I have plans to include him later and it'd be nice to tie them together. In fact, Mephisto could even get some lip service in the religion of the Skrulls, but it's not critical.

Fantastic Four II A Fantastic Four sequel would assuredly feature Galactus. Sure that was the premise behind the Tim Story sequel, but I've no qualms making him a humanoid and last survivor of the Big Bang. Most of the movie would feature all four of Galactus' heralds (Air Walker, Terrax, Fire Lord and Silver Surfer) whom the FF would be facing off against. The heralds would be quite effective in preparing the Earth for consumption, and it's only when the Fantastic Four are able to convert the Silver Surfer that the Big G is turned away. 

This movie would also feature the wedding of Reed and Sue as well as introducing Alicia Masters (who, in some versions of the story) is key in persuading the Silver Surfer to save humanity.

Silver Surfer
Spinning from FFII, the Surfer gets his own solo film. I'm avoiding the temptation of launching him into space and we instead will see him trapped on Earth and seeking redemption for the sins he committed while serving Galactus. The quest will be complicated by the involvement of Mephisto. While the demon may seem tonally mismatched to the star-soaring Surfer, they faced off quite often in the comics and their stories were always quite good. Hopefully introducing the devil in the Dr. Doom movie will help pave the way for his larger role here.

Fantastic Four III Finally, our Fantastic Four trilogy wraps up with the final showdown between the FF and Dr. Doom. With the birth of Reed and Sue's son, Doom decides he is the perfect prize. Undoubtedly bestowed with great power, Doom seeks to claim him for his own purposes, not the least of which would be the conquest of Earth. At least part of this story should include Doom succeeding in using little Franklin Richards' powers to alter reality and make him emperor so the FF can see that the world would actually be as peaceful and ordered as Latveria under his rule. The price would be too high, though, but it would add some debate to the defeat of this world conqueror.

So that's at least five films in my Fantastic Four franchise. Hopefully that will see us through the 10 years it usually takes before somebody decides it's time to reboot the franchise again.