Fant4stic "It's Clobberin' Time!" - The Ben "Thing" Grimm Thread

[Willie Lumpkin]

I always thought Chris Bauer (Andy from true Blood) would make a great Ben Grimm. He's not a pretty boy (rugged looks), got the gruff voice, and has an awkward charm about him that'd suit Ben well.

Slap a toupe on him I'd be good with him as The Thing.

If I had only seen him in True Blood, I might argue with you, but he was great in The Wire.

But I think he's too old (pushing 50) at this point.

 

[Venomfan]

if we must go bald again lets have fun with it

 

[Obi-Ron]

They should totally cast all the Seinfeld stars as the FF.

"And what's the deal with the Negative Zone?"

 

[terry78]

If they're going younger, he has to be young as well.

 

[Spider-Fan83]

what if they had Ben start out as a little person...

 

[Kevin Smith]

This is perfect, THIS would be so awesome. Man I would love it if they did this in the movie... I would freak in excitement if I saw this in a trailer.

I think even the 1994 Thing wasn't that bad and was better than the Tim Story one. Seriously 1994 Thing was kind of awesome for being non CGI.

Although The Thing in ROTSS was a big improvement over The Thing in the first FF film, I actually thought he looked quite good at times:

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

This is perfect, THIS would be so awesome. Man I would love it if they did this in the movie... I would freak in excitement if I saw this in a trailer.

I think even the 1994 Thing wasn't that bad and was better than the Tim Story one. Seriously 1994 Thing was kind of awesome for being non CGI.

Although The Thing in ROTSS was a big improvement over The Thing in the first FF film, I actually thought he looked quite good at times:

Agreed on all points, but the suit was clearly limited - particularly with regards to any real action movement that Ben needs to do to be Ben.

Even if Fox completely screws this up, as seems possible if not likely, one think I'm hoping for is a Thing finally done right. And with what Fox/Weta did with Planet of the Apes, I'm optimistic we could get something pretty cool.

 

[bubbadoom]

This is perfect, THIS would be so awesome. Man I would love it if they did this in the movie... I would freak in excitement if I saw this in a trailer.

I think even the 1994 Thing wasn't that bad and was better than the Tim Story one. Seriously 1994 Thing was kind of awesome for being non CGI.

Although The Thing in ROTSS was a big improvement over The Thing in the first FF film, I actually thought he looked quite good at times:

He does look pretty nice in this photo! If the nose was higher [something I am sure Michael C. would not have gone for], the brow bigger and the mouth corners digitally widened I would have been pretty happy with this. Maybe a little more digital stunt doubles would have been okay - the ones in the first Fox FF movie were fine.

 

[Kevin Smith]

Agreed on all points, but the suit was clearly limited - particularly with regards to any real action movement that Ben needs to do to be Ben.

Even if Fox completely screws this up, as seems possible if not likely, one think I'm hoping for is a Thing finally done right. And with what Fox/Weta did with Planet of the Apes, I'm optimistic we could get something pretty cool.

What The Thing may look like is the only thing I am excited about based on what we know of the upcoming film so far, I'm with you on that.

 

[Dr. Evil]

They should totally cast all the Seinfeld stars as the FF.

"And what's the deal with the Negative Zone?"

So would that make Newman Dr. Doom?

And why are there no rumored names for this role? Maybe they want a big name?

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

And why are there no rumored names for this role? Maybe they want a big name?

Or maybe they want to save money on CGI and will replace him with:

 

[Obi-Ron]

So would that make Newman Dr. Doom?

Hello...Dooman.

Yeah I can get behind that.

 

[Incrediblejeff]

I have a feeling that maybe one of the guys up for Reed may be up for Ben.

 

[Spider-Fan83]

maybe they had us fooled the whole time, and Mike B is really up for Ben instead

 

[Gabe99]

'Fantastic Four': Michael B. Jordan Is On Board, But As Who?
Plot details, shooting location for reboot also confirmed.

After months of speculation, we finally have some definitive information on FOX's "Fantastic Four" reboot. As first noticed by a site called Acting Auditions, actor Michael B. Jordan is officially on board the project, reteaming with director Josh Trank ("Chronicle"). In addition, we also have our first rundown of the revised origin for the Marvel superhero team and plot for the movie. But is that the whole story?

First, a little bit of background: Fantastic Four is one of the two properties, along with X-Men, that are licensed by FOX, rather than sitting neatly in the Disney stable. Though the studio has already made one unsuccessful go at the franchise, the movies need to stay in production or the rights revert back to Marvel Studios. Hence a reboot of the property, which has been in development for several years. Jordan has long been rumored to be taking on the part of Johnny Storm, a.k.a. The Human Torch in the movie, but nothing else has been confirmed... Until now.

The first clue came from Louisiana's government entertainment set, which lists productions happening throughout the state. Information for sites like these are usually submitted by production managers seeking permission to shoot in the area, so any info won't just be gleaned from the often unreliable superhero rumors sites. According to them:

"Fox feature film 'Fantastic Four' starring Michael B. Jordan will begin shooting March 24th in Baton Rouge."

Notice that they don't specify what part Jordan will be playing, but that's certainly a smoking gun if we've ever seen one.

The second clue/info on the plot comes from Production Weekly, an industry magazine that lists productions, shooting locations and casting info. According to the Thursday, January 23 issue, "Fantastic Four" is produced by Matthew Vaughn and Kevin Feige; written by Jeremy Slater, Seth Grahme-Smith, and Simon Kinberg; and confirms that Joshua Trank is directing, with the only confirmed cast as Michael B. Jordan (again, without specifying a role).

All of this isn't surprising, but what is, is the plot description:

Spoiler

"Two friends (who end up being Mr. Fantastic and The Thing), starts with them being really young. An event happens at 16 that changes them, instead of being superheroes, they are basically owned by the government and used as weapons. (Miles Teller, Kit Harington and Richard Madden testing for Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic. / Kate Mara and Saoirse Ronan are being tested for Sue Storm/Invisible Woman. / June 19, 2015 release date.)"

Spoiler

For those not familiar with the Fantastic Four's comic book origin, the titular foursome test an experimental rocket, which ends up being bombarded with cosmic rays and granting them amazing powers. Even the "Ultimate Fantastic Four" comic book, which recast the team as teens working in a think tank run by the government, had them all getting their powers together; though this time due to a teleporter accident.\

Spoiler

Point being, perhaps even more radical than the revamped origin of their powers is that the Fantastic Four don't actually get their abilities at the same time.

The other point we'll mention, though this is pure speculation, is that we have actors confirmed as testing for Reed Richards and Sue Storm, but not Johnny Storm (The Human Torch) or Ben Grimm (The Thing). Yes, Jordan has been rumored to be the Human Torch pretty much since this project was announced; but given the plot's focus on the friendship between Reed and Ben, what if he's actually playing The Thing?

It would be a bit of a left turn, but traditionally Johnny is the comic relief of the group, while The Thing is the heart and soul. Given Jordan's increased profile and versatility as an actor, it wouldn't be too surprising to see a switch, with Jordan playing the soulful Thing instead of the jokey Torch. It would also be "interesting" to see whether the notoriously closed minded comic book community would get more upset seeing the African-American Jordan cast as the traditionally Caucasian Johnny Storm, or the traditionally Jewish and Caucasian Ben Grimm.

With shooting beginning shortly (in Baton Rouge on March 24, though it may head to other locations earlier), we should expect some official casting announcements soon.

"Fantastic Four" hits theaters on June 19, 2015.

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

maybe they had us fooled the whole time, and Mike B is really up for Ben instead

That would be interested. While I'm not sure he fits either role as well as other possible actors I'd feel better with him as a young Ben than Johnny.

 

[Hypestyle]

I hope Thing gets several strength stunts throughout the film. There should be showcases for 85 ton lifting and punching throughout.

 

[Panther X]

Casting Rumor: Could Josh Gad be 'Fantastic Four''s Thing?

Do you want to build a rockman? Hearing that Josh Gad is Fox’s number one choice for the role of Ben Grimm (aka the ever-lovin’, blue-eyed Thing) in the impending Josh Trank reboot of Fantastic Four is one of those “I never thought of that” bits of casting rumor that just feels right. There’s an innate sweetness to Gad that would shine through Grimm’s orange, rocky exterior in a drastically different way than forcing a bruiser to act sweet. Once you hear it, it’s easy to imagine him in the running as their top choice.

There’s still not a single official announcement regarding cast, including this one, but the word on Gad comes from within casting circles close to the film. Previous rumors have included Miles Teller as Reed Richards and Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm, and neither have been decisively debunked nor announced. Gad certainly fits in with the age of the other actors in the mix, his star is on the rise, and there’s also a chance it could be mostly vocal performance if the Thing is entirely CG. Gad’s certainly proven his mettle there, helping Frozen, whose marketing relied heavily on Gad’s snowman Olaf, gross $800 million worldwide.

http://www.movies.com/movie-news/josh-gad-fantastic-four-the-thing/14767

 

[BETArayBill]

Everything in that article I feel the opposite of gad as Ben Grimm? This movie finds a way to piss me off more with every casting rumor next Taylor swift will be rumored for dr. Doom

 

[Saitou Hajime]

Fox and the WWE must share the same creative teams. They seem to enjoy trolling the **** out of us.

 

[wobbly]

Just how I've always imagined Ben Grimm....Not

Can only hope Fox are trollling the living hell out of us all. They cast quite accurately for the most part with X-Men, but seem to want to throw everything out of the window for this?

These choices don't even fit the UFF for christ's sake, and that would be bad enough....

 

[Saitou Hajime]

Devin apparently pressed Trank on this latest casting rumor, and mercifully the latter debunked it.

 

[the gael]

Do Josh Trank ever use Twitter or say something about the movie other that "It's not true" / "It's totally false" / "I've never heard anything of that, so it's not correct" ?

I remembered when David Slade or Joe Carnahan tried to do Daredevil, you could feel from their tweet taht they had a lot of passion for their job on the character, even if it didn't work.

It's a strange game. Fox send rumor, and a seemingly p####d Josh Trank debunks the rumor one or two day later.

What's the purpose of this game ? Is it a way to prepare the public to a terrible movie, using false rumors, the worst possible, so when the actual movie will come out, it won't feel "that bad" ? Is it a message to Disney / Marvel ? Is it a way to p### Trank because they don't agree on the final product, and so he will be forced to "surrender" to want Fox want or will quit the movie direction by himself ?

It's really strange and not very engaging...

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

Remember, a lot of these rumors probably come from agents. Their client may be 1 of 100 people who tested for the role, but some agents want to get people talking about their client so they'll let it be known that they tested for a role (particularly one like this that has a lot of people talking).

In any case, I'm not going to get myself worked up over rumors. When we have some real news and a complete cast, I'll consider it then.

Though I do wish there were at least a couple names being floated that we could get excited about. Hopefully the people who have the best chance are keeping quiet about it and it's the also-rans who are talking about it - which is reasonably likely.

 

[wobbly]

Remember, a lot of these rumors probably come from agents. Their client may be 1 of 100 people who tested for the role, but some agents want to get people talking about their client so they'll let it be known that they tested for a role (particularly one like this that has a lot of people talking).

In any case, I'm not going to get myself worked up over rumors. When we have some real news and a complete cast, I'll consider it then.

Though I do wish there were at least a couple names being floated that we could get excited about. Hopefully the people who have the best chance are keeping quiet about it and it's the also-rans who are talking about it - which is reasonably likely.

This casting thing has seemed a bit all over the place so it's possible the true/real contenders will be something much better than we keep hearing (I bloody well hope so). Only 3 days left for them to have them locked up 'by the end of the month', so if they are gonna announce them it ought to be soon.