It might be a matter of superstition, but there is plenty of evidence to suggest that there might never be a good Fantastic Four movie. The fact that every film version of Fantastic Four has either been a box office flop, critically panned, or suffered massive issues during production would be enough to keep most people away from pursuing the classic Marvel series as a project. However, filmmakers continue to try and try again.
Although the Fantastic Four is considered by many to be a classic comic series and an institutional part of Marvel Comics, fans have never been satisfied by any film adaptation. True, the 2005 version made enough money to earn a green light for a sequel, but it was never up to par for audiences and critics. The history of the curse of the Fantastic Four goes back decades. Here is why some think that their films will forever be Victor Von Doomed.
8 The 1994 Debacle 'The Fantastic Four'
The first attempt to make the Fantastic Four a film came in 1994. Tim Burton's Batman came out a few years earlier and Hollywood now realized that comic book movies were major box office draws, not just niche fandoms for geeks and nerds. In the wave of superhero movies that followed, B-movie legend Roger Corman tried to dip his toes into the pool of this new market with The Fantastic Four, which was one of his favorite comics. Although the film was shot and edited to completion, it was never released. According to Stan Lee, the characters at the time were owned by German producer Bernd Eichinger, and he only had the film made so that he could retain his ownership rights. Meaning he used both Corman and the cast and crew, extorting their belief that this would see a theatrical release. While the film never made it to theaters, bootlegs were released and it lives forever on the internet on several websites. It has a 30% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
7 The 2005 Release Got Bad Reviews
It seemed the curse was going to be broken with the star-studded release of the 2005 version. Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis, and Chris Evans all starred in the project, leading many to believe it would be a smashing success. The film did well at the box office, earning $335 million on its $100 million budget. But reviews of the movie were notoriously awful. Some critics have gone as far as to say that it was worse than the unreleased 1994 film. Ouch.
6 The 2007 Sequel Also Got Bad Reviews
Despite the critical panning, 20th Century Fox (now just called 20th Century) gave the thumbs up for a sequel. Fantastic Four: Rise of The Silver Surfer had a slightly higher budget, around $120 million, and earned $300 million at the box office. Although the reviews were less harsh, audiences felt the film did not live up to the hype that was generated around the film. The introduction of another classic Marvel character, the Silver Surfer, was not enough to wow viewers. Today the film only has 37% on Rotten Tomatoes, it's not even 10% more popular than the 1994 film. Again, ouch.
5 Fant4stic Flopped Worse Than Any Other Version
While the 1994 version is considered to be a bad movie it has a campy appeal to it that gives it a cult following. This is a common theme for Roger Corman movies, B-movie fans expect his films to be poorly acted and over the top. Also, while the mid-2000s releases were not audience favorites, they still turned a profit. But 2015's awkwardly titled Fant4stic was considered to be one of the worst flops of that year. According to Bomb Report, 20th Century Fox lost over $60 million. It also has less than 10% on Rotten Tomatoes. So what happened?
4 Fant4stic Had A Terrible Time In Production
Well, the case that the film is cursed continues to mount. In addition to everything this franchise has already endured, the 2015 flop was doomed from the moment production began. Soon after the release, stories about on-set fights between the director and crew began to circulate. Also, the studio did a terrible job promoting the film during their poorly planned press tour. Also, Disney was not pleased that a competing company owned characters that were arguably part of their franchises and pulled no punches against 20th Century Fox.
3 Marvel Cancelled The Comic Book Run In 2015
One of the ways that Disney got back at Fox was in the comic book realm. Marvel, not wanting to help the competition, canceled their Fantastic Four comic series in the middle of the series without giving a reason.
2 Racist Fan Boys Came At Michael B Jordan
This is no fault of the filmmakers but it is evidence that the franchise has some baggage. When news broke that Michael B Jordan, a black man, would play the human torch, racist fanboys were quick to take to the internet to give the movie even more terrible reviews. It was a disgusting display of bigotry that haunts the comic book world to this day.
1 One Of The Directors Quit
There is still hope that one day the world will get a good Fantastic Four movie. Now that Disney owns Fox we could see the Fantastic Four officially join the MCU for the first time. But it seems like that might be a long shot as well. Spider-Man director Jon Watts was originally attached to the film, but he abruptly quit. That does not bode well for the film's future, and yet again, it adds to the mountain of evidence that the Fantastic Four is a cursed franchise. Superstition or not, it's amazing that there has never been a well-received Fantastic Four film by now.
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