Image: Disclosure/Marvel Studios
Expected to premiere in 2025, Fantastic Four: First Steps will mark the debut of the most famous family of superheroes in comics in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Although the film will not take long to make its debut, some of its details are still unknown to fans — such as how The Thing will be characterized.
While in the first Fox films the hero was characterized only with the use of prosthetics and practical effects, the 2015 feature film created a version of him entirely made in computer graphics. Marvel, on the other hand, seems to have decided to take a middle path. to ensure the best possible quality for your new production.
Will the Thing from the new Fantastic Four be made in CGI?
In an interview with VarietyEbon Moss-Bachrach (The Bear) shared some details about how his version of Ben Grimm/The Thing will be characterized. He explained that he's been forced to shave his beard more frequently because he has to use a lot of motion capture equipment while filming The Fantastic Four.
Actor from The Bear series will play The Thing in the MCU.Source: Disney
“I’m doing a lot of motion capture. So in order to get the most facial capture data, I have to be clean-shaven,” he explained. “They have so many amazing animators working on it, literally hundreds of people dedicated to it. We’ve been shooting for about six weeks, I haven’t seen anything yet,” he continued.
While much of the First Steps Thing is supposed to be built in CGI, Marvel will also appeal to practical references to build the character. In August of this year, leaked photographs from the film set showed a person wearing generously sized prosthetics and a mask covering their face while playing the character.
The new Thing must be made in CGI from practical referencesSource: Disclosure/Marvel
However, at the time it was not possible to confirm whether the person doing this was Moss-Bachrach herself or someone else who was assisting the production team. However, it was clear that she was using generously sized gloves to be able to imitate the size and strength of the being with skin completely transformed into stone.
In this way, Marvel should work with Fantastic Four: First Steps in a similar way to how it treated Josh Brolin's Thanos in the past. While the actor did use some accessories to emulate the villain's presence on screen, they ended up essentially serving as references for the animators' work.
Movie promises a classic look for its heroes
While the Thing's final look has yet to be clearly revealed by Marvel, the expectation is that the new film will bring a more convincing version of the character than the Fox projects. His most recent appearance was in the 2015 feature film, when Jamie Bell's movements and expressions were transformed using only CGI techniques.
Bringing Ben Grimm to the big screen is no easy task.Source: Disclosure/Marvel
The way the film handled the hero was quite different from the company's first two films, in which Michael Chiklis wore a real-life costume. While this meant that his version of Ben Grimm wasn't as strong or large as he was in the comics, the decision has proven to stand the test of time.
Betting on a retro look for its protagonists, Fantastic Four: First Steps should also use CGI to build its Galactus, who will be played by Ralph Ineson. Currently, the film is scheduled to premiere on July 25, 2025, but recent rumors indicate that it may be postponed to November 7 of the same year.