Rumor Control: Is Marvel Casting Adam Driver To Make Us Care About ‘Fantastic Four’ Again?

We all know that Marvel is working on a Fantastic Four movie as part of Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It’s one of the studio’s most talked-about projects, considering how poorly the previous Fantastic Four adaptations have fared, but also because of the pivotal role the characters play within the larger Marvel narrative.

So considering the buzz surrounding this new Fantastic Four iteration, it’s not surprising that the rumor mill is absolutely swirling with names of people who could take on the roles of the Four as well as that of the movie’s villain, which will likely be Doctor Doom.

The latest of these rumors to surface with a certain insistence claims that Adam Driver is one of the frontrunners for the role of Reed Richards. And I honestly can’t believe Disney’s nerve to use my favorite brooding mountain, as John Oliver would say, to lure me back to the cinema to see yet another Fantastic Four movie. So rude on their part. I would be the first to buy tickets.

So is Adam Driver playing Reed Richards?

While several reports floating around the Internet, including one from The Direct, claim that Driver is in final talks to step into Mr. Fantastic’s shoes, nothing legitimate has been reported—let alone confirmed— so far. We’re still very much dealing with rumors here.

Sure, it wouldn’t be the first time Driver has worked with a Disney property, as I’m sure we all remember Kylo Ren/Ben Solo from the Star Wars sequel trilogy. And there’s at least one more actor who has gone down the “Star Wars to Marvel” pipeline in recent years: Oscar Isaac, who went from the sequel trilogy to starring in the Moon Knight series on Disney+.

While we already had a chance to encounter Reed Richards in an MCU property, with John Krasinski playing him in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness in 2022, he wasn’t technically our Earth’s Mr. Fantastic—which makes the idea of going with an actor other than Krasinski one with solid narrative-based motivations.

We know that Driver has played a variety of roles in his career, from sci-fi blockbusters like Star Wars to period pieces like The Last Duel to auteur dramas like Marriage Story—which netted him his second Academy Award nomination—to action flicks like the recently released 65. So he definitely would have the acting chops for the role. But I also recognize that I very much might be a touch biased.

When can we expect some certain news about the Fantastic Four casting?

All reports about the cast of this Fantastic Four movie are so far simple rumors and hearsay from industry insiders. The chances of Driver playing Reed Richards are just as viable as the chances that it could be Penn Badgley (as some reports were saying in 2022), and it could be Jodie Comer who plays Sue Storm just as much as it couldn’t. 

It’s still unclear when we might finally get an official cast list. Fantastic Four is expected to be released in February 2025, the second cinematic installment of Phase 6 after Deadpool 3 in November 2024, so there’s still quite some time to go. And considering that San Diego Comic-Con is coming up in July, Marvel execs might be saving some announcements for the panels then.

(featured image: Columbia Pictures)