Ben Travis

1 week ago | empireonline.com | Ben Travis

On the surface, The Fantastic Four’s Reed Richards has everything going for him. The guy is literally known as ‘Mr. Fantastic’, with a reputation for being, well, the smartest person ever. Within Marvel’s First Family, there are all kinds of hats that Richards wears (not literally; he doesn’t have a Captain America-style helmet).

1 week ago | empireonline.com | Ben Travis

In the world of the Fantastic Four (and, hopefully, outside of it too) it’s cool to be nerdy. Marvel’s First Family has many talents among them, but they’re smart – astronaut-level, since they get their powers in a cosmic blast. And so when going for the role of Sue Storm – aka the Invisible Woman – in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, which finally brings the crew into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Vanessa Kirby put her own smarts on front street.

1 week ago | empireonline.com | Ben Travis

There have been big baddies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe over the years. Take Thanos, who succeeded in wiping out half of all known life in the galaxy and beyond. Ultron took one look at humanity and decided it needed wiping off the face of the Earth. And while Loki has flip-flopped between good and evil, he once inflicted an entire alien army upon New York City. So far, so bad.

1 week ago | empireonline.com | Ben Travis

It’s ironic: previous attempts at bringing the Fantastic Four to the screen have not necessarily been… well, fantastic. Tim Story’s Fantastic Four and Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer are products of a different blockbuster era. 2015’s reboot Fantastic Four (aka ‘FANT4STIC’) was a critical and box office bomb. And yet, the Fantastic Four themselves – Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm – are cornerstone characters of Marvel’s comic book history.

1 week ago | empireonline.com | Ben Travis

If it weren’t for the Fantastic Four, Marvel simply wouldn’t exist in the way it does today. The combined power of Reed Richards (aka Mr. Fantastic), Sue Storm (aka The Invisible Woman), Johnny Storm (aka the Human Torch), and Ben Grimm (aka The Thing) forever changed the trajectory of the biggest name in comics – delivering a family of heroes whose groovy, cosmic adventures changed the superhero game, buoyed by their bonds and bickering alike.