We knew the upcoming reboot of Fantastic Four was going to be significantly darker than the previous two-film franchise, but the first images from the new film to feature the superhero team’s rock-skinned powerhouse The Thing offer a hint of just how different this new take on the classic story will be.
Two images of the character have arrived online over the last 24 hours, each offering a glimpse of how The Thing will be brought to life on the screen by actor Jamie Bell and the film’s visual-effects team, which used motion-capture technology and digital effects to depict the team’s popular, tragic hero.
The first image of Ben Grimm, who’s transformed into a super-strong, stone-skinned behemoth after a scientific experiment goes awry, debuted via Empire Magazine (see above). The rock-hewn creature offers pretty compelling evidence that this version of the character will be a far cry from Michael Chiklis’ rubber-suited version of The Thing from the 2005 film.
That image was followed by another shot of The Thing in action (see below), courtesy of EW.com. This second photo makes the character look even more monstrous, and hints that the film could indeed mine some of the more tragic elements of The Thing’s backstory.
Directed by Josh Trank, Fantastic Four tells the story of four people whose lives are forever changed when a failed experiment drastically alters their bodies and gives them superhuman abilities. Often described as Marvel Comics’ “first family of superheroes,” the Fantastic Four are one of the oldest superhero teams in comic-book history.
Along with Bell as Ben “The Thing” Grimm, the upcoming film star Miles Teller (Whiplash) as elastic-skinned genius Reed Richards, Kate Mara (House of Cards) as Sue “The Invisible Girl” Storm, and Michael B. Jordan (Chronicle) as the flying fireball Johnny Storm. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes actor Toby Kebbell plays Doctor Doom in the film, and he’s joined by Reg E. Cathey (The Wire) as Dr. Franklin Storm, and Tim Blake Nelson (O Brother, Where Art Thou?) as Harvey “Mole Man” Elder.
Fantastic Four hits theaters August 7.
