When an actor signs on to star on to star in an upcoming Marvel movie, they can't say much about it. They're contractually obligated to say next to nothing about what they are doing – which is for the audience's benefit to an extent, as it's bad when secrets get exposed on the internet early. All that being said, humor makes a wonderful tool for diversion, and it's one that The Bear star Ebon Moss-Bachrach used effectively while recently discussing his part in the upcoming Fantastic Four blockbuster.
It was in February 2024 (on Valentine's Day, to be specific) that Marvel Studios announced Moss-Bachrach as part of the Fantastic Four cast, and the actor was asked about it during a recent appearance on The Daily Show. Co-host Desi Lydic asked him how he was preparing for his part in the 2025 movie, and he said with a smile,
I'm playing Ben Grimm, who becomes The Thing – who is a man encased in rock. [laughs] I've just been looking at rocks.
In reality, Ebon Moss-Bachrach won't be doing much interacting with rocks or fake rocks in the making of The Fantastic Four. As most would expect, the new incarnation of the character (previously portrayed by Michael Chiklis and Jamie Bell) will be brought to life with performance capture technology. As such, the actor won't be wearing a rock suit and instead will be going around set wearing a set of grey pajamas covered with visual effects tracking markers.
Ben Grimm isn't a role doesn't require much the way of physical training (unlike Joseph Quinn, he's not going to the gym at all hours of the day). Ebon Moss-Bacharach's Marvel preparation has been more about emotionally understanding the character. For that, he has not just the script for the film, but also a Marvel Unlimited account that was gifted to him by Marvel Studios. He continued,
What am I doing? I don't know, I've been reading a lot of comics. It's kinda nice. They gave me this kind of Marvel Unlimited thing so I can just go on my iPad and to any comic book that Marvel's ever released. That feels kinda cool.
At present, we don't know much about how The Fantastic Four will present this new incarnation of The Thing, but a core quality of the character is that sees his incredible powers as a curse far more than his teammates given that he has been physically stripped of his humanity. The hero is famously able to find some happiness thanks to his relationship with Alicia Masters, a blind sculptor, but it is unknown if Alicia will be a character in Marvel's upcoming blockbuster.
In addition to Ebon Moss-Bacharach, The Fantastic Four will also star Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, Julia Garner, Ralph Ineson, John Malkovich, Paul Walter Hauser, and Natasha Lyonne. The film will be in theaters everywhere on July 25, 2025, and be sure to stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for all of the latest updates about the project.
