Julie Garner has just boarded the cast of The Fantastic Four, tapped to play a major role in the anticipated film. She will be joining previously announced cast members Pedro Pascal (Mister Fantastic/Reed Richards), Vanessa Kirby (Invisible Woman/Sue Storm), Joseph Quinn (Human Torch/Johnny Storm), and Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Thing/Ben Grimm).
Per Deadline, Julia Garner will be playing the role of the MCU’s version of Shalla-Bal. This is a character that previously appeared in Marvel comic books, making her debut in 1968’s Silver Surfer #1. Created by Stan Lee and John Buscema, Shalla-Bal was introduced as the lover of Norrin Radd, who became the Silver Surfer, and she’d later take on the mantle herself in other stories. The Deadline report describes the MCU’s Shalla-Bal as “a version of Silver Surfer,” coinciding with rumors that a female incarnation of Silver Surfer would appear in the film.
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Julia Garner has garnered great acclaim, which includes winning three Primetime Emmy Awards for her unforgettable role as Ruth Langmore in the hit Netflix series Ozark. She would later earn another nomination for her leading role as Anna Sorokin in the Netflix miniseries Inventing Anna. Garner has also appeared in films like Grandma, The Assistant, and The Royal Hotel. She is attached to star in an upcoming Wolf Man remake in the works at Blumhouse Productions, which is now filming.
Matt Shakman (WandaVision) is directing The Fantastic Four. The screenplay comes from Eric Pearson (Thor: Ragnarok, Black Widow). While this hasn’t been confirmed, it’s been rumored that Galactus will be featured as the primary villain, though Doctor Doom may still make an appearance later in the movie to help set up a potential sequel. Javier Bardem’s name has come up in the rumor mill as a candidate to play Galactus.
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The Silver Surfer has long been a popular character in Marvel comic books, video games, and animated projects, but live-action appearances have been much more limited. A version of Silver Surfer was featured in the 2007 sequel Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer; Doug Jones portrayed the character while Laurence Fishburned provided the voice. A spinoff film was planned with the idea of exploring more of this version of the character, but it never made its way out of development hell. In more recent years, there have been rumors of a Silver Surfer movie getting planned by Marvel and Disney, but it’s never come to fruition.
The Fantastic Four will be released in theaters on July 25, 2025.
Source: Deadline
The Fantastic Four
One of Marvel’s most iconic families makes it back to the big screen, the Fantastic Four.
- Director
- Matt Shakman
- Release Date
- July 25, 2025
- Cast
- Pedro Pascal , Ebon Moss-Bachrach , Vanessa Kirby , Joseph Quinn
- Writers
- Josh Friedman , Jeff Kaplan , Stan Lee , Ian Springer
- Main Genre
- Superhero
- Producer
- Kevin Feige
- Studio(s)
- Marvel Studios