It was the most talked about productions of 2015, and one of the most under-performing movies of the year, but Josh Trank’s Fantastic Four is still making headlines.
Recently it was revealed that Fantastic Four 2 had been quietly removed from Fox’s schedule, but producer Simon Kinberg says they’re working on where to take the franchise following the movie’s dismal performance with fans and critics – and at the box office.
“Every film isn’t going to be a home run”, Michael B. Jordan – who played The Human Torch in the movie – told IGN. “Everybody involved didn’t set out to make a film that didn’t work. I think everybody wants to do the best job possible. I think it was a big education for me to realise that things aren’t in your control, and you can do everything you’re supposed to do. You can give 110% every day, and the movie still not work out. But that may or may not be on you and you’ve got to be OK with that. Moving onto the next thing. For me, first thing off I had this project [Creed] coming on right after so it makes it a little bit easier to swallow.”
When asked if there is a chance Fantastic Four will get a sequel, Jordan responded, “I’m not sure man. Honestly, there are so many things outside of the actor’s control. You know, as much as we want and we like these characters, and we like these worlds and stuff like that, we have such a small say in what goes on behind closed doors – all that other, extra stuff. Also, I love the character. I’m a big comic book fan, and that’s one of the reasons I wanted to do it in the first place. We’ll see what happens.”
But would he play the character given the chance? “Johnny Storm is an incredible character”, he replied. “Why not?”
SEE ALSO: Kate Mara pokes fun at Fantastic Four’s poor box office
With the poor box office performance and negative stigma attached to the project, it seems unlikely that 20th Century Fox would greenlight a sequel right now. More likely the studio would look to reboot (again) in a few years once all of this news has died down. Although this does mean that Jordan and his co-stars Miles Teller, Kate Mara and Jamie Bell won’t be called back to return.
Originally published January 15, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
