Can’t say we didn’t see this one coming.
In a report by BoxOfficeMojo, the sequel to the “Fantastic Four” reboot was removed from 20th Century Fox‘s upcoming release schedule. The sequel was initially slated for release on 9th June 2017.
Directed by Josh Trank, “Fantastic Four” was initially highly anticipated by fans due to Trank’s success with the 2012 sci-fi film, “Chronicle”.
But as you may already know, the potentially awesome franchise was plagued with problems amidst production. Trank was originally attached to direct an upcoming “Star Wars” project before he was fired by Disney. Word has it that Disney fired him due to his unusual conduct during the making of “Fantastic Four”, which made Disney executives change their minds about entrusting the young director with “Star Wars”.
An insider also told The Hollywood Reporter that the “Chronicle” director was at times “very isolated” and “did not offer clear direction”, adding:
IF YOU’VE GOT SOMEONE WHO CAN’T ANSWER QUESTIONS OR WHO ISN’T SURE OR IS IN HIDING, THAT’S NOT GOOD.
On top of his erractic behaviour, there was apparently a conflict between Trank and Simon Kinberg, co-writer and producer for “Fantastic Four”. Kinberg had to step in with producer Hutch Parker to complete the movie, which underwent re-shoots just 3 months before opening.
Earlier in August, Trank also lashed out on Twitter to reveal that the original version of his film would’ve been better than the one that’s out in theatres.
John Campea of Collider Movie Talk was told that Fox apparently took over the 3rd act from Trank and removed him from the editing room. A total of 3 big action set pieces were pulled by Fox days before Trank began filming “Fantastic Four”, whch explained the lack of action scenes in the movie.
As a result, the film, which is the 3rd “Fantastic Four” movie distributed by 20th Century Fox, struggled to find its audience when it was officially released. It is considered to be a failure by many as it grossed USD167million worldwide on a USD120 million budget.
With the cast still in place, the sequel to “Fantastic Four” can still happen. However, the story needs a drastic change and it needs to have a better director.
What do you think? Will you still watch the sequel to “Fantastic Four”? Who do you think should direct it? Share your thoughts in the comments box below.
Sources: Coming Soon, Cinema Blend, BoxOfficeMojo, AV Club, THR, Collider.
