Credit: D23There’s an update on the debut of Doctor Doom in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – and it’s not what some fans expected.
According to industry insider Jeff Sneider, Marvel Studios is apparently in no rush to cast the villain for its upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, as it doesn’t plan to make him the film’s main antagonist.
Instead, Sneider revealed that Marvel will have the cosmic entity of Galactus as the film’s big bad. He also added that the studio is currently eyeing Javier Bardem – who previously worked with Disney to portray the villain Captain Salazar alongside Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) and King Triton in The Little Mermaid (2023) – as its number one choice for the role.
A separate report from Daniel Richtman previously suggested that Ryan Gosling was being considered for a role in The Fantastic Four, most likely for Galactus.
Galactus is known as the Devourer of Worlds in Marvel Comics, where he quite literally eats entire planets to sustain his life force. Armed with cosmic power, he is said to be the oldest living entity in the entire Marvel universe.
Despite his lack of a major role in the film, Doctor Doom is allegedly still set to appear in The Fantastic Four. However, Sneider reports that his appearance is scheduled for the film’s final moments, setting him up for a bigger role in Avengers: Secret Wars (2027). Doctor Doom is notably the main villain in the Secret Wars storyline in the comics.
As was announced earlier this week, Marvel’s upcoming long-delayed take on the Fantastic Four – which will mark the third cinematic iteration of Marvel’s first family – is set to star Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. It’s expected to start filming in August 2024, in time for a July 2025 theatrical release.
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