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Ozark actress Julia Garner is boarding Marvel’s upcoming Fantastic Four film as the Silver Surfer.
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The three-time Emmy winner will appear in the superhero film opposite Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards (aka Mr. Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm (aka the Invisible Woman), Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm (aka the Human Torch) and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm (aka the Thing).
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Marvel announced the entry earlier this year in a post on X in which they wished fans a “Happy Valentine’s Day from Marvel’s First Family!” with a retro pic of the Golden Age superheroes. The feature is slated to hit theatres on July 25, 2025.
Last of Us Emmy nominee Pascal had long been rumoured for the role of Richards, with Mission: Impossible’s Kirby and Stranger Things breakout Quinn also linked to the project. Moss-Bachrach has become one of Hollywood’s most in-demand actors after he recently won an Emmy for his performance as Richard “Richie” Jerimovich on FX’s The Bear.
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The heroes, who were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby for Marvel Comics in 1961, feature some of the publisher’s most beloved comic book creations.
In 2020, Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige announced that the film would be helmed by Spider-Man director Jon Watts. The project will now be spearheaded by WandaVision director Matt Shakman from a script by Josh Friedman, Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer.
According to Deadline, Garner, 30, will play Shalla-Bal, a version of Silver Surfer from the comics. The character is one of several to be known as the Silver Surfer and first appeared alongside the four astronauts-turned-superheroes in 1968 as the lover of Norrin Radd.
John Krasinski played an iteration of Richards in 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but so far the Fantastic Four has not featured in Marvel’s ongoing Cinematic Universe. Until Disney acquired Fox in 2019, the studio did not own the rights to X-Men, Deadpool or Fantastic Four.
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The heroes have appeared on the big screen several times in the past. Two films were released in 2005 and 2007, which starred Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, and Michael Chiklis. A 2015 reboot starring Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Bell was meant to kickstart a new era for the quartet, but it was a box office flop.
In the comics, the characters frequently battled Doctor Doom after gaining their superpowers following a mishap during a scientific mission to outer space.
In 2019, Feige told Postmedia that he was looking forward to introducing Marvel’s First Family to the big screen. “One of the most exciting things about what’s coming up next is being able to continue to surprise and subvert expectations for what a Marvel Studios movie can be,” Feige said.
Garner is one of Hollywood’s most in-demand actresses. After she wrapped up Ozark, she earned another Emmy nod for her work in the Netflix miniseries Inventing Anna. She was also in talks to play Madonna in a proposed biopic.
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