Julia Garner is the latest addition to Marvel’s ‘The Fantastic Four’.
She’ll play the enigmatic, powerful character in the superhero pic.
The latest adaption of the famous comic book title will be on screens in July next year.
Now that Marvel has, after years of speculation, finally locked down its main cast for ‘The Fantastic Four’, the company is assembling the cast around them.
Marvel’s Fantastic Four. Photo courtesy of Pinterest.
Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Sue Storm/The Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm/The Human Torch and Ben Grimm/The Thing are key players in the pages of Marvel, known as the “First Family”, and introduced in 1961. They are among most anticipated characters (alongside the X-Men) to be included in the sprawling Marvel Cinematic Universe.
They’re canonically exposed to galactic radiation and end up cursed/blessed (depending on how you view it) with strange abilities. Reed can stretch his body in a variety of ways, Sue can turn invisible and generate forcefields, Johnny’s body becomes engulfed in flame (and he can fly), while Grimm becomes a rock-covered, incredibly strong creature.
And to be clear here, Pascal will be Reed, Kirby’s playing Sue, Quinn is taking the role of Johnny and Moss-Bachrach will be Ben.
They’ve been brought to screens before –– an unauthorized Roger Cormanversion floats around the internet after being traded on bootleg videos years ago, and then there were the Fox efforts, 2005’s ‘Fantastic Four’ and 2007 sequel ‘Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer’. They were followed by the dark, gritty and unsuccessful reboot in 2015.
Who is the Silver Surfer?
Marvel Comics’ Silver Surfer. Photo: Marvel Comics.
Before anyone starts complaining that they thought the Surfer was a dude, cool your jets. And also remember that the expansive universe of comic books makes for many variations of characters.
Though the character has often been seen in its Norrin Radd form (the original Silver Surfer), there exists a woman named Shalla-Bal, who was his love interest that ended up taking on the mantle of the Surfer.
Either way, the character usually serves as the herald for the god-like, planet-consuming villain Galactus, so there’s a chance he/it could show up to threaten our heroes.
‘Monarch: Legacy of Monsters’ director and executive producer Matt Shakman. Photo: Apple TV+.
Matt Shakman, one of the key directors on ‘WandaVision’, is overseeing the new film.
This one has been in development for a long time now, with Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer among those who have worked on drafts of the script. ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ co-writer Josh Friedman is crafting the latest version.
When will ‘Fantastic Four’ be in theaters?
‘Fantastic Four’ currently has a release date of July 25th, 2025.
Americans Hanna (Julia Garner) and Liv (Jessica Henwick) are best friends backpacking in Australia. After they run out of money, Liv, looking for an adventure, convinces Hanna to take a temporary live-in job behind the bar of a pub called ’The Royal Hotel’ in a remote Outback mining town. Bar owner Billy (Hugo Weaving) and a host of locals give the girls a riotous introduction to Down Under drinking culture but soon Hanna and Liv find themselves trapped in an unnerving situation that grows rapidly out of their control.
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Who is in the cast of ‘The Royal Hotel’?
(L to R) Jessica Henwick and Julia Garner in ‘The Royal Hotel.’ Photo: Neon.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Kitty Green about her work on ‘The Royal Hotel,’ the inspiration for the movie, what she learned from making ‘The Assistant,’ reuniting with Julia Garner, casting Jessica Henwick, rehearsal time and budget, filming in Australia, and the challenges of shooting on location.
Director Kitty Green on the set of ‘The Royal Hotel.’ Photo: Neon.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch the interview.
Moviefone: To begin with, the movie was inspired by the 2016 documentary ‘Hotel Coolgardie’ by Pete Gleeson. Can you talk about getting the spark of the idea for ‘The Royal Hotel’ from that film?
Kitty Green: I mean, I guess it always takes a few things. It’s not a one thing. It’s always a few confluence of things, and I think I was on a jury, and I watched 10 documentaries, and I watched ’Hotel Coolgardie’ in amongst that 10. I hadn’t seen anything like that before. I’d seen a lot of things set in the Outback, but not through a female lens or through a woman’s perspective on a place like that. So I thought that was really interesting and felt fresh to me or it hadn’t been explored. My mother wanted me to come and make a movie in Australia so I could spend more time with her. That was the second thing, and then I met a production company that had an Australian arm, and they said, “If you ever want to do anything in Australia.” So it lined up in a way where I was like, “Oh, I’ve got this idea,” and they thought that that was interesting. I knew it was a role Julia could play, and I just had this beautiful collaboration with her through ‘The Assistant.’ So the stars aligned, and it seemed to work out.
MF: Besides reuniting with actress Julia Garner, was there anything that you took from making your last film, ‘The Assistant,’ that helped inform you while making this movie?
KG: I mean, so much, but I think the biggest thing is it’s Julia’s face. Julia’s got this really beautiful expressive face, and you can plunk her down in anywhere and just watch her react to the environment. With very little movement she can convey so much. Fear, tension, all of that rests in her perception of the events, I think. So, to me, that’s the link and something that I knew I could rely on. I wrote the script with that in mind, knowing that she could deliver. Whatever I threw at her, she could deliver.
Jessica Henwick in ‘The Royal Hotel.’ Photo: Neon.
MF: Can you talk about casting Jessica Henwick opposite Julia Garner? Why was Henwick the right actress to play Liv?
KG: So there was a few things we needed with Liv, which was someone who energetically brought something different to what Julia brought. But also, the biggest thing for me was someone that Julia and I would get along with because all of a sudden, our little duo was becoming a trio, and it was really important that the three of us just clicked, and that was what I was searching for. It feels more like searching for a relationship, looking energetically for something more than any CV. You know what I mean? It helped that she’s brilliant and was in brilliant movies, but I was really just looking for someone who would get along with us. Who felt like we could trust, and who was down to earth, and playful, and was excited about the role. I met Jessica, and within a few minutes, I knew she was right. There was something about just her energy that she’s really brilliant and serious, but also goofy and strange. It just fit. So, immediately, I thought, “Oh, yeah, the role is yours.” So, really, it worked well, and the two of them just got along so beautifully. The film rests on their chemistry as well. Somehow it’s one of those rare times where I look back on this movie, and I wouldn’t have recast anyone. I feel like everyone is who they should be, played the role they should play, and everyone seemed to deliver what they needed to. I was really excited by the cast.
MF: As a filmmaker, can you talk about the challenges of shooting a feature film on a limited budget?
KG: I mean, mostly, I have the plan because I don’t really get the budgets to play. We shot this in 25 days, and it’s not enough time for everything. There’s so little coverage. Basically, anything you see in the movie is all we shot. There’s no additional stuff sitting on the floor somewhere. It’s really what we got.
Julia Garner in ‘The Royal Hotel.’ Photo: Neon.
MF: Did you have the luxury of rehearsal time with Julia and Jessica?
KG: The thing is about Julia’s process, and maybe it’s because she has done a lot of television before, she doesn’t like a lot of rehearsals. We discuss, a lot of discussion, but she doesn’t really like to play it out as much. We do bits and pieces of things, but it’s not something where we sit and really rehearse. A lot of what she does is from her gut instinct, and that’s why it’s fabulous and feels real and authentic because it really is in the moment. So she didn’t work that way, but they were around for a couple of weeks. I got them to tend bar at a little pub in Adelaide, and they did a bunch of stuff like that to try and get just used to the rhythms of things and how to work the space. But Hugo and Ursula, who played Bill and Carol, they love rehearsals. We spent a lot of time rehearsing with the two of them, which was great because it was wonderful, and it’s so comforting to know the scenes nailed before you even go and do it. Whereas with Julia and Jessica, it was a bit more of a highwire act, hoping it worked out. Everyone has their process, I guess, and you just figure out what works for them and what will get the best out of them, and I make it work somehow.
(L to R) Ursula Yovich and Hugo Weaving in ‘The Royal Hotel.’ Photo: Neon.
MF: What was it like returning to your home country of Australia to make this movie?
KG: I mean, pretty great. I got to work with my collaborators that I worked with in film school, essentially. So there’s something nice about that history and having knowing each other for a long time, which made us very comfortable. Australians are very easy. It’s very relaxed, probably too relaxed at times, and probably not what the girls were used to, but it’s a nice atmosphere. It was a nice energy. We cut the movie in Sydney, and Sydney is beautiful. I haven’t spent much time in Sydney. I’m from Melbourne, but it was beautiful to just be in that environment and its lovely beaches. I can’t complain.
MF: Finally, you shot specifically in a small South Austrailian town called Yatina. What were the challenges for you shooting in such a remote location?
KG: It was a nightmare. It was so hard. It was really in the middle of nowhere. It’s a town of 29 people, and we were split because there’s no towns around where we could all stay. All the crew was split over all these towns nearby, and it was just a real challenge. We had a lot of weather issues. It was always raining. It was hard. I think the girls were a bit freaked out, and so the first thing we did was send them out there. They were like, “What have we signed up for?” But it got a lot easier. That was the first two weeks, and then we were in the studio for the interiors for three weeks. I feel like everyone calmed down once we got inside. It was also freezing. We shot in winter, and it was zero degrees. It was really cold. It was just a hard few weeks. I think it all adds to the tension. People ask me about the tension, and I’m sure it comes, partly, from how hard that set was.
(Center) Hugo Weaving in ‘The Royal Hotel.’ Photo: Neon.
Beyond Fest 2023 takes place September 26th – October 10th.
Now entering its 11th year, the highest-attended genre film festival in the US, Beyond Fest is back and bigger than ever.
The event, which has brought first looks at new movies and more to fans for years, is back this month, comprising 55 features, including 5 world premieres, 3 North American Premieres, 7 US premieres, and 18 West Coast Premieres.
When and where is Beyond Fest 2023 happening?
(Left) Nicolas Cage in ‘Dream Scenario.’ Courtesy of A24.
This year’s event runs between September 26th – October 10th.
In partnership with the American Cinematheque and presented exclusively by distributor NEON, Beyond Fest will screen at the Aero Theatre, Los Feliz 3 and Regency Village Theatre.
Here’s what Head of Programming Evrim Ersoy has to say about this year’s fest:
“With over 19,000 attendees in 2022, our goal this year was to go bigger while also exposing audiences to new filmmakers who represent the future. We’ve delivered on that promise with a program that has the world’s most celebrated artists like James Cameron, Guillermo del Toro, and Roger Corman joining us alongside some of Cinema’s boldest new voices including Nikhil Nagesh Bhat, Demián Rugna and Macon Blair.”
Among the offerings at this year’s event are Gareth Edwards’ sci-fi epic ‘The Creator’, which is the opening night movie at the Aero, while Kristoffer Borgli’s comedy-satire sensation, ‘Dream Scenario’, featuring Nicolas Cage, will close things out.
We can also expect to see Justine Triet’s Palme d’Or winner ‘Anatomy of a Fall’ and Kitty Green’s slow-burn outback thriller ‘The Royal Hotel’.
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio in James Cameron’s ‘The Abyss.’ Courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Talking of icebergs, James Cameron will also be in attendance: not bringing ‘Titanic’, but instead to introduce and then discuss the Special Edition of 1989’s ‘The Abyss’. You’d think the man would be too busy working on his ‘Avatar’ sequels, but Beyond Fest has him!
Guillermo del Toro will be there to mark 10 years of his robots-vs-giant-monsters pic ‘Pacific Rim’, and maintaining the theme, director Brad Bird will bring his much-loved animation classic ‘The Iron Giant’.
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Elsewhere, there will be a chance to see the remake of Troma classic ‘The Toxic Avenger’ starring Peter Dinklage as the mutated, mop-wielding hero, and so much more.
Peter Dinklage in ‘The Toxic Avenger.’ Credit: Legendary Pictures.
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How can I get tickets for the 2023 Beyond Fest?
A scene from ‘All of Us Strangers.’ Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures.
