Landing a great cast for Fantastic Four: First Steps was the number one challenge for the upcoming Marvel movie. As a quartet of actors will be portraying Marvel’s First Family, it's a lot of pressure to pick actors who both have budding chemistry with one another and embody the comic book superheroes fans have loved for decades. It's worth noting Pedro Pascal’s casting as the new Reed Richards drew fan backlash over a year ago, but First Steps’ director Matt Shakman still stands by his decision now.
Back in February 2024, there were fans who said “the downgrade is massive” when referring to Pedro Pascal’s casting as Reed Richards. Some said they didn’t feel the Chilean-American actor had the vibes of the elastic superhero and were hoping the fan choice of John Krasinski would ultimately come through, as The Office star actually played Mr. Fantastic in Doctor Strange 2.
Ultimately, Pascal was signed on as the Fantastic Four leader, but people haven't forgotten the Internet grumblings. Recently, Shakman discussed what happened with Empire, defending his choice of actor:
I was looking for an actor who could contain multitudes. There’s the very cerebral Reed Richards, and then there’s the action hero, the leader, the husband, the father, the friend. I knew Pedro could do all of that.
The director makes a great point. Anyone who's been watching television the last few years should know Pascal's talents are just as flexible as his superhero character. Based on what I’ve seen of Pascal’s performance in The Last of Us (which is streaming with an HBO Max subscription), he’s capable of playing a complex character who can still be a warm teddy bear you gotta love. I expect the same performance range when he joins the MCU, as well.
Reed Richards has a complexity the actor should be more than capable of portraying. Because of the scientist’s wide intelligence, he has a logical mindset, but acquiring superpowers is also a real game-changer for his personality. We already know in Fantastic Four: First Steps that Reed will be a husband to Sue Storm who is about to become a new father, and will have to shield his family and the rest of the world from the planet-eating cosmic Galactus. With Mr. Fantastic having to use his brains, elastic limbs, and heart to overcome challenges, I think the Narcos actor has this role in the bag.
Like social media user @REDACTEDSpider pointed out when the Pedro Pascal backlash was going on, this isn’t the first time an actor has gotten casting criticism before showing off their impressive performance. Heath Ledger's casting as the Joker in The Dark Knight initially drew criticism, but he blew everyone away with his haunting performance, even garnering a posthumous Oscar. The same was said with Robert Downey Jr. cast as Iron Man, with initial doubt coming from the actor's well-known troubled past. Now, it’s hard to picture anyone else donning the armored suit.
It’s important to remember this isn’t Pedro Pascal’s time playing an adapted character. From Oberyn Martell in Game of Thrones to Joel Miller in The Last of Us, Pascal’s method of handling fan expectations is to center his choices for the beloved world or story he’s in.
While Pedro Pascal’s casting as Reed Richards drew initial backlash over a year ago, Matt Shakman still thinks the Golden Globe nominee is the right choice to handle the superhero character’s many layers. Despite fans' initial skepticism, I have a feeling they'll end up loving what Pascal brings to the 2025 movie release once they see him in action on July 25th.
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