Watch the Cast of the Unreleased 'Fantastic Four' Movie Take Their Place in Marvel History
The cast of Roger Corman's unreleased 1994 Fantastic Four film reflects on what might have been during their cameo appearances in Fantastic Four: First Steps. Though the movie became a Hollywood joke, it was a passionate project for those involved, dedicated to bringing the Marvel Comics characters to the screen.
Marvel honored the original film by including its cast in this year's tribute, The Fantastic Four: First Steps. In a new featurette, the actors shared memories from their time working on Corman's production.
Insights from the Cast and Crew
Jay Underwood, who played Johnny Storm, explained the urgency behind the film’s production: “He was going to lose the rights unless he went into production by a certain date. So he goes to Roger Corman and says, ‘Can you make this movie and make it right now and make it cheap?’" Underwood added that the budget was about one million dollars, which was large for Corman but still low for a Fantastic Four movie.
Grant Curtis, the MCU producer for First Steps, praised some aspects of the original film: “Corman did a lot of things right in that movie … One of the things I think they did extremely well was the character relationships. Not every special effect holds up over time, but those were very real relationships that we took note of when we reviewed the film early on.”
“He was going to lose the rights unless he went into production by a certain date. So he goes to Roger Corman and says, ‘Can you make this movie and make it right now and make it cheap?’” – Jay Underwood
“One of the things I think they did extremely well was the character relationships. Not every special effect holds up over time, but those were very real relationships that we took note of.” – Grant Curtis
Author’s Summary
The unreleased 1994 Fantastic Four film, despite its modest budget and status as a cult oddity, left a lasting impression celebrated through the dedication of its cast and Marvel's homage.