Marvel Studios is now courting the director of WandaVision to helm Marvel's Fantastic Four. The Fantastic Four is one of the most iconic teams in Marvel comics, composed of Mr. Fantastic (Reed Richards), who can stretch his body to outlandish proportions, The Invisible Woman (Susan Storm), who can turn invisible and create force fields, The Human Torch (Johnny Storm), who can engulf himself in flames, and The Thing (Ben Grimm), who is a giant humanoid made of rocks. Their story has been adapted into live-action multiple times, first in a never released 1994 Roger Corman film, then in 2005's Fantastic Four and its 2007 sequel Rise of the Silver Surfer, and most recently in Josh Trank's 2015 flop Fantastic 4.

Back in July 2019, Marvel Studios announced that they would be developing their own Fantastic Four movie to be a part of the MCU, though the film has struggled to get its cast and crew locked down. Originally, Spider-Man: No Way Home director Jon Watts was attached to the project, but he dropped out in April 2022. Likewise, there were rumors that John Krasinski, who played Reed Richards in an alternate universe in this year's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, would be reprising the role in the MCU proper, but that potential Mr. Fantastic return has not been officially confirmed or denied at this time.

Related: Doom Will Definitely Be The Fantastic Four Movie Villain Now, Right?

Per Deadline, Marvel's Fantastic Four, which is still set for a release date of November 8, 2024, is now eyeing a new director. Shakman, who helmed the well-regarded Disney+ series WandaVision for Phase 4, is currently in talks to helm the project. This would become his sophomore project in the MCU, as he hasn't participated in the franchise before or since the release of the miniseries in January 2021.

John Krasinski as Mr Fantastic in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Although the director has amassed many credits throughout his career, he has largely worked in television up to this point. This includes slots on popular titles like House, The Good Wife, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, as well as big-budget projects like Game of Thrones and the upcoming Godzilla and the Titans series for Apple TV+. Should the Fantastic Four deal go through, this would theoretically be Shakman’s third feature, after the 2014 Liam Hemsworth thriller Cut Bank and the upcoming 2023 Star Trek sequel, to which he is currently attached.

Considering the critical praise and commercial success of WandaVision, it’s surprising that Shakman hasn’t yet been tapped for another MCU project. Fantastic Four would be an excellent way to stretch his muscles and see if he can convert WandaVision’s particular offbeat style into a blockbuster feature. The stories that typically involve the Fantastic Four likely wouldn’t offer as many opportunities for Lynchian weirdness, so it will be interesting for fans to see what else he can bring to the table.

Source: Deadline

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