Most iconic superheroes have been given the proper cinematic treatment, but if there's one property that still hasn't received a definitive live-action adaptation -- despite several attempts -- it's the Fantastic Four. The two live-action films from the mid-2000s, directed by Tim Story, received poor reviews and modest fanfare. Later, Josh Trank's 2015 version became one of the most panned superhero films of all-time and sunk the franchise to lower heights. However, before the Story films, future Ant-Man director Peyton Reed and Buffy the Vampire Slayer writer Douglas Petrie envisioned a wildly different version of the superheroes.
Fresh off the success of Sam Raimi's Spider-Man, 20th Century Fox hired Reed to direct its version of a superhero blockbuster with Fantastic Four. Reed was hot off directing Bring it On, and he brought in Angel producer Petrie to write the script. Unfortunately, the duo couldn't get on the same page with the studio, and they were replaced with Story and screenwriters Mark Frost and Michael France to deliver the 2005 film.
The most intriguing and weird part of the initial concept was the planned cast. Although casting was never official, Reed and Petrie envisioned Charlize Theron as the Invisible Woman, John C. Reilly as The Thing, Paul Walker as the Human Torch and Alexis Denisof as Mr. Fantastic, with Jude Law as Doctor Doom. While each of these actors are popular, it's wild to imagine them all in the same movie together as Marvel's First Family.
In the late '90s, Theron broke out as a movie star in The Devil's Advocate and The Cider House Rules, and she would have been ideal casting for a superheroine like Sue Storm. This was also just before she showed her greatness as an actress with an Oscar-winning performance in Monster.
Before becoming best known for teaming up with Will Ferrell in comedies, Reilly showed off his acting chops in supporting roles for critically acclaimed films. In 2002, he even earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as Amos Hart in the musical Chicago.
The late, great Walker had his breakout role with The Fast and the Furious, and it's easy to see him as Johnny Storm after watching that movie. His youthful charisma and charm as Brian O'Connor in the stylish action film would easily translate to playing the Human Torch.
While Theron, Reilly and Walker remain household names, Denisof is the odd person out, best known for playing Wesley Wyndam-Pryce in Buffy and Angel, a member of the Watcher Council and Angel Investigations. He certainly has the look of the comics' Mr. Fantastic, and he's as qualified as Ioan Gruffudd was when he played the hero in the Story films.
While Reed's Fantastic Four cast is interesting, his version of Doctor Doom is probably better than the ones that made it to the big screen. By the early 2000s, Law had starred in genre films such as Gattaca, eXistenZ and A.I. Artificial Intelligence. He would have made an excellent Doctor Doom, and it's surprising that he didn't play a villain in a superhero film until Captain Marvel.
While Reed and Petrie's movie never saw the light of day, the details of the project are fascinating. Their intention was to display the celebrity life of superheroes in the style of The Beatles' movie A Hard Day's Night. Doctor Doom was even intended to be the film's version of Pete Best, the original drummer who Ringo Starr replaced. Doom had been the odd man out, as the rest of the space crew gained superpowers while he had to create his own. From the premise to the cast, this non-existent film is more captivating than what's been seen before.