Matt Shakman Discusses 'Fantastic Four' Villains That Didn't Make The Cut
Image Source: Film One
The latest in superhero flicks on the big screen have taken the approach of rebooting sans origin story, with Fantastic Four: First Steps following the new trend. In fact, in the post-production phase, director Matt Shakman faced the difficult decision to leave out some characters and backstory details. This omission, unfortunately, led to John Malkovich’s Red Ghost being cut from the theatrical release. Shakman sat down with Entertainment Weekly to discuss the Red Ghost, as well as other villains that didn’t make the cut…this time.
Shakman explained to EW that, “The opening of the movie was about trying to quickly tell people who didn't know about the Fantastic Four and who they are and how they got to be who they are.” Without doing an origin story, this of course took time away from other plot beats and characters. Shakman noted that this was meant to “quickly tell [the audience] who [the Fantastic Four] are individually, what their powers are, how they got them, and how important they are to their society. They are an inspiration. They're celebrities, they're leaders, they're inventors” he said.
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From there, Shakman detailed his disappointment regarding cutting Malkovich’s scenes. He said, “John did an amazing job. He's a fantastic actor. He is one of my favorite people, and he's brilliant in the movie. It just was such a heartbreaking thing to have to eliminate that section, but we had so much to introduce. We had so many characters to introduce this whole world, this whole other universe, and it just became too much backstory.”
Shakman also noted the importance of other villains from Earth 828, particularly Mad Thinker, Puppet Master, and, of course, Red Ghost’s henchmen of Super-Apes who also sadly were left behind on the editing room floor. Shakman told EW that “[they] are great characters and they certainly could come back.” He went on to say, “There are so many great villains and so many great characters in the Fantastic Four [comics], and there are hopefully other opportunities down the road to include them.”
Of course, with Avengers: Doomsday on the horizon and a known connection between Fantastic Four’s big bad, Dr. Doom and Mad Thinker, down the road may come sooner rather than later. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is currently playing in theaters.
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