Jon Watts helmed the three successful Spider-Man movies produced by Sony but that were set within Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. These were complete crowd-pleasers. His latest, Spider-Man: No Way Home, had the second-highest-grossing opening weekend in the U.S. In 2020, it didn’t come as much of a surprise when Disney/Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige announced that Watts had been entrusted to bring the Fantastic Four into the MCU.
Alas, this is not to be. Watts has departed the project. In a statement, the auteur declared:
“Making three Spider-Man films was an incredible and life-changing experience for me. I’m eternally grateful to have been a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for seven years. I’m hopeful we’ll work together again, and I can’t wait to see the amazing vision for Fantastic Four brought to life.”
Marvel Studios president, Kevin Feige, and co-president Louis D’Esposito added:
“Collaborating with Jon on the Spider-Man films has been a true pleasure. We were looking forward to continuing our work with him to bring the Fantastic Four into the MCU but understand and are supportive of his reasons for stepping away. We are optimistic that we will have the opportunity to work together again at some point down the road.”
Note that no actual “reasons” were given for Watts’ departure.
Watts is set to write and direct a movie for Apple Studios that will reunite George Clooney and Brad Pitt from the Ocean’s flicks. He is also set to produce a reboot of the Final Destination franchise.
20th Century Fox released two moderately successful Fantastic Four movies in the 2000s, although they haven’t aged well and aren’t highly regarded at this point. Before Disney bought Sony, the latter studio attempted to retain the rights to the characters by quickly releasing a movie in 2015. That film, directed by Josh Trank, was a disaster.
Fans are looking forward to a new iteration from Marvel Studios that will hopefully better capture the spirit of the comic books. Of course, not much has been said about this new take, and Watts’ departure sets the project back a bit.
What director do you think should helm Fantastic Four for Marvel Studios? How do you think they should approach this property?
