This is why we caution with what we like to call “wish list stories” that are really non-stories. Essentially, what happens is a studio starts to ramp up a project — like we can all tell is happening with the “Fantastic Four” reboot given all the various rumors — and then studio execs begin to collate a wish list of 20-some names they want for each role (plus the director) and sometimes those memos leak early. See the recent Star Trek memo about the “Next Generation” casting, which didn’t leak early, but is a good example of what we’re talking about.
So case in point, there’s rumors that 20th Century Fox wants “True Blood” star Stephen Moyer to play Dr. Doom in the aforementioned “Fantastic Four” film penned by Michael Green (one of the co-writers on “Green Lantern” and “The Flash” with Greg Berlanti and Mark Guggenheim). And yes, perhaps Fox does want Moyer and perhaps he’s on the top of their list, but he’s not even in any kind of active discussions.
Asked point blank about the rumor by MTV, he quipped, “Isn’t that great? Isn’t that fantastic? I know nothing about it.” Clearly, Fox hasn’t even got to the point of reaching out to agents which is why these stories should be left behind closed doors and or reported when they’ve actually coalesced into a possibility.
Look, we’ve seen what purports to be a casting list for “Superman: The Man Of Steel,” but a) it’s too early and b) more than likely none of those names are likely going to stay on the list, so why bother adding noise to the Internet about it (though it’s possible we may backtrack with one specific instance that has supporting evidence, be forewarned, but we don’t tread lightly)?
To recap rumors that likely won’t happen, names like Adrien Brody and Jonathan Rhys Meyers have been tossed around for Reed Richards (again, obviously just studio best-case-scenario daydreaming), Bruce Willis and Kiefer Sutherland’s names have been mentioned for the voice of The Thing, and directors that Fox is possibly considering include Joe Carnahan, David Yates and James McTeigue. It’s all still in very early stages and we don’t see much of this coming to fruition, but McTeigue and Carnahan do seem like logical choices given their somewhat mediocre work for what’s proven to be a very mediocre super hero franchise so far (though after Carnahan’s “A-Team” bomb, would he want to work with the studio again?). Do yourself a favor and remain skeptical about all of it until you hear more concrete info.
