Make Natasha Lyonne’s universe Marvel because she’s joining the cast of Fantastic Four in a mysterious role.
The cast of Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four is growing by the day! After announcing the additions of John Malkovich, Julia Garner, Paul Walter Hauser, and Ralph Ineson, Deadline says Poker Face and Russian Doll star Natasha Lyonne is joining the latest iteration of Marvel’s first family. Fantastic Four stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Susan Storm-Richards, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm, and Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm. There is no indication if the Richards’ children, Valeria and Franklin, will appear in the film. The addition of Natasha Lyonne is already sending Fantastic Four fans into a tizzy with theories about who she could play in the film.
WandaVision director Matt Shakman is directing Fantastic Four from a script by Ric Pearson, Josh Friedman, Jeff Kaplan, and Ian Springer. Plot details are sparse, though we know Julia Garner is playing Shalla-Bal, a version of Silver Surfer from the comics. Rumors suggest Paul Walter Hauser is playing the subterranean villain Mole Man, but this is not confirmed. Ineson joins the cast as Galactus, the world-eating titan, with Malkovich’s role remaining a mystery.
I’m eager to learn who Natasha Lyonee plays in Fantastic Four. I’m waiting for a cast announcement that suggests Alicia Masters, Ben Grimm’s true love, will be in the movie, but nothing leaps out at me. I don’t think Lyonne fits the Alicia Masters mold, but I have no intimate knowledge of Marvel’s plans for Fantastic Four.
Before the Emmy-nominated Lyonne was blowing up awards season for Rian Johnson’s Poker Face, she played Vivian in Slums of Beverly Hills, Jessica in American Pie, Christine in Detroit Rock City, and most notably, Nicky Nichols in the Netflix prison drama Orange Is the New Black.
Production is slated to kick off this summer, and Shakman has teased that the movie will be unlike anything we’ve seen from Marvel so far. “It’s different in so many ways,” Shakman said. “I wish I could be specific. I wish I could say more. But we are doing things very differently from a story standpoint, from an approach to the filmmaking standpoint, that really fits the material. I wish I could say more. I would love to, but I can’t. But I think it’s going to be unlike anything you’ve seen before, and certainly unlike anything at Marvel that you’ve seen before.” Fantastic Four will hit theaters on July 25, 2025.
What do you think about Natasha Lyonne joining the cast of Marvel’s Fantastic Four?