View source for The Fantastic Four (unreleased film)

{{Short description|Unreleased superhero film completed in 1994 directed by Oley Sassone}}
{{For|the upcoming Marvel Studios film|The Fantastic Four: First Steps}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2014}}
{{more citations needed|date=December 2017}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = The Fantastic Four
| image          = Fantastic-four-movie-poster.jpg
| alt            = 
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = Oley Sassone
| producer       = Steven Rabiner
| screenplay     = {{Plainlist|
* [[Craig J. Nevius]]
* Kevin Rock
}}
| based_on       = {{based on|[[Fantastic Four]]|[[Stan Lee]]|[[Jack Kirby]]}}
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Alex Hyde-White]]
* [[Jay Underwood]]
* [[Rebecca Staab]]
* [[Michael Bailey Smith]]
* [[Carl Ciarfalio]]
* [[Ian Trigger]]
* [[Joseph Culp]]
* [[Kat Green]]
* [[George Gaynes]]
}}
| music          = {{Plainlist|
* David Wurst
* Eric Wurst
}}
| cinematography = Mark Parry
| editing        = Glenn Garland
| studio         = [[Constantin Film]]
| distributor    = [[New Concorde]]
| released       = {{Film date|1994|05|31|unreleased}}
| runtime        = 90 minutes
| country        = [[Germany]]<br>[[United States]]
| language       = English
| budget         = $1 million<ref>{{cite web |url=https://adamcadre.ac/calendar/17/17318.html |title=Fantastic Four |website=Adam Cadre |access-date=2024-09-08}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://archive.laist.com/programs/offramp/2015/08/04/43964/roger-corman-tells-us-about-his-original-1994-fant/ |title=Roger Corman tells us about his original 1994 'Fantastic Four' that was never released |website=LAist |date=August 4, 2015 |access-date=2024-09-08}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/the-fantastic-four-roger-corman-1994-oral-history-1851489671 |title=An oral history of Roger Corman's unreleased Fantastic Four movie |website=The A.V. Club |access-date=2024-09-08}}</ref>
}}

'''''The Fantastic Four''''' is an unreleased 1994 [[superhero film]] based on the [[Marvel Comics]] [[Fantastic Four|superhero team of the same name]], created by [[Stan Lee]] and [[Jack Kirby]]. The film features the team's origin and first battle with [[Doctor Doom]]. Executive-produced by low-budget specialists [[Roger Corman]] and [[Bernd Eichinger]], it was made to allow Eichinger to keep the Fantastic Four film rights. It was [[List of unproduced Marvel Comics projects|not officially released]], although [[Pirated movie release types|pirated]] copies have circulated since 1994 as well as various clips being available online.

==Plot==
[[Mister Fantastic|Reed Richards]] and [[Doctor Doom|Victor Von Doom]] are college friends who use the opportunity of a passing comet called Colossus to try an experiment. It goes horribly wrong, leaving Victor believed dead. [[Invisible Woman|Susan]] and [[Human Torch|Johnny Storm]] are two children living with their mother, who owns a [[boarding house]] where Reed lives. [[Thing (comics)|Ben Grimm]] is a family friend and a college buddy of Reed's.

Ten years later, Reed, Susan, Johnny and Ben participate in a mission in an experimental spacecraft of Reed's as the same comet passes Earth. Unbeknownst to them, a crucial diamond component designed to protect them from the comet's cosmic rays, has been replaced with an imitation by a criminal named The Jeweler, leaving them exposed to the radiation.

After crash-landing on Earth they discover that the cosmic rays have given them [[Superpower (ability)|special powers]]: Reed's bodily structure has become elastic, Susan can become invisible, Johnny can generate fire on demand and Ben has transformed into a creature with stone-like skin.

They are later captured by men posing as Marines and are taken to Victor who has become the villainous monarch Dr. Doom. They escape and meet at the [[Baxter Building]], trying to decide how to move forward with their superpowers. An angry Ben leaves them to go out on his own, feeling he has become a freak. He is found by homeless men and joins them in the lair of the Jeweler.

The Jeweler has his henchmen kidnap blind artist [[Alicia Masters]] whom he plans to force into being his bride, intending to use the stolen diamond as his wedding gift to her. Doom, who has his own plans for the diamond, sends his henchmen to The Jeweler to make a deal for it but to no avail. Doom seizes the diamond himself, and a gun battle breaks out between his men and The Jeweler's. When Ben enters the fray, Doom takes Alicia hostage. When Ben threatens to 'clobber' Doom, Alicia begs him not to risk it and confesses her love for him. Her confession changes Ben back to human form and he flees into the city streets. Frustrated at his helplessness he reverts to the Thing.

When Ben returns to his friends, Reed has learned that Doom is actually Victor. Doom contacts them and threatens to use the diamond to power a laser cannon that will destroy [[New York City]] unless they surrender to him. Realizing they are the only ones who can stop him, they don costumes and travel to Doom's castle where they confront waves of his military forces. As Reed battles him, Doom manages to fire his laser but is knocked off a balcony wall. As he clings to the wall Reed tries to rescue him but Doom's gauntlet comes loose and he falls into the fog below. His gauntlet (still on the balcony) starts to move on its own. Meanwhile, Johnny has become the Human Torch and flies off to intercept the laser's shot, deflecting away from the city and into outer space. Ben frees Alicia and finally introduces himself to her. She feels the rocky surface of his face but is not fazed by his altered appearance. The Fantastic Four dedicate themselves to fighting evil, and Reed and Susan marry.

==Cast==
* [[Alex Hyde-White]] as [[Mister Fantastic|Reed Richards / Mr. Fantastic]]
* [[Rebecca Staab]] as [[Invisible Woman|Susan Storm / Invisible Woman]]
:* [[Mercedes McNab]] as Young Susan Storm
* [[Jay Underwood]] as [[Human Torch|Johnny Storm / Human Torch]]
:* [[Phillip Van Dyke]] as Young Johnny Storm
* [[Michael Bailey Smith]] as [[Ben Grimm]]
:* [[Carl Ciarfalio]] as [[Thing (comics)|The Thing]]
* [[Joseph Culp]] as [[Doctor Doom|Victor Von Doom / Dr. Doom]]
* [[Kat Green]] as [[Alicia Masters]]
* [[Ian Trigger]] as The Jeweler
* Annie Gagen as May Storm

==Production==
In 1983, German producer [[Bernd Eichinger]] met with [[Marvel Comics]]' [[Stan Lee]] at Lee's [[Los Angeles]] home to explore obtaining an option for a movie based on the [[Fantastic Four]].<ref name=itop109>{{cite news |title=Fantastic Faux! |first=Robert |last=Ito |work=[[Los Angeles (magazine)|Los Angeles]] |date=March 2005 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=SF8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22selling+the+character%27s+option+to+Universal%22&pg=PA109 109]}}</ref> The option was not available until three years later, when Eichinger's production company [[Constantin Film]] obtained it for a price the producer called "not enormous" and which has been estimated to be $250,000.<ref name=Itop110>Ito, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=SF8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA110 110]</ref> Despite some interest from [[Warner Bros. Pictures]] and [[Columbia Pictures]], budget concerns precluded any production, and with the option scheduled to expire on December 31, 1992, Constantin asked Marvel for an extension. With none forthcoming, Eichinger planned to retain his option by producing a low-budget ''Fantastic Four'' film.<ref name=Itop110 /> In September 1992, he teamed with [[B-movie]] specialist [[Roger Corman]], who agreed to produce the film on a $1 million budget, to be released by his distribution company [[New Horizons Pictures]].<ref name=Itop110 />

Production began on December 28, 1992, under direction of music video director Oley Sassone, lasting for 21 days<ref name=Itop111 /> or 25 days.<ref name=Gorep40>Gore, p. 40</ref>

[[Storyboards]] were drawn by artist Pete Von Sholly.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.filmthreat.com/features/37428/ |work=[[Film Threat]] |date=October 1993 |issue=12 |volume=2 |page=30 (sidebar: "Stunning Storyboards") |title=What Do You Take Us 4? |first=Christian |last=Gore |access-date=January 1, 2012}}</ref><!--Only the page frame and not the scanned magazine content appears to be achievable in WebCitation.org--> The movie was shot on the [[New Concorde#Beginnings|Concorde Pictures]] sound stage in [[Venice, California]], as well as in [[Agoura, California]] for a spacecraft-crash scene, the [[Loyola Marymount University]] campus for a lab-explosion scene, and the former [[Pacific Stock Exchange]] building in downtown Los Angeles for team-meeting scenes.<ref name=Itop111>Ito, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=SF8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22the+thing.+This+would+be+his+second+movie.%22&pg=PA111 111]</ref>

Costume designer Réve Richards recalled in 1993 going to [[Golden Apple Comics]] on [[Melrose Avenue]] in Los Angeles to buy ''Fantastic Four'' comic books for research. Upon explaining his task, "these people in the store just swarmed me and said, 'You are going to be faithful to it?' And I told them, 'This is why I am buying these books.'"<ref name=Gorep31>Gore, p. 31</ref> Paul Ahern was hired as weapons consultant,<ref name=Gorep31 /> and Scott Billups for computer visual effects.<ref name=Gorep33side>Gore, p. 33 (sidebar: "FF FX")</ref> The special-effects makeup was by John Vulich and Everett Burrell of Optic Nerve.<ref name=Gorep33>Gore, p. 33</ref> Stuntman [[Carl Ciarfalio]], who wore a rubber suit to portray the monstrous superhero [[Thing (comics)|Thing]], worked with actor [[Michael Bailey Smith]], who played the Thing's human self, Ben Grimm, so that their mannerisms would match.<ref name=Gorep33 /> During the months of post-production, music composers David and Eric Wurst personally contributed $6,000 to finance a 48-piece orchestra for the soundtrack.<ref name=Itop111 />

==Marketing and release plans==
A 1993 magazine article gave a tentative release date of [[Labor Day]] weekend 1993.<ref name=Gorep41>Gore, p. 41</ref> During that summer, [[Trailer (promotion)|trailers]] ran in theaters and on the video release of Corman's ''[[Carnosaur (film)|Carnosaur]]'' and ''[[Little Miss Millions]]''. The cast members hired a publicist, at their own expense, to help promote the film at a clips-screening at the [[Shrine Auditorium]] in Los Angeles and at [[San Diego Comic-Con]], and the film appeared as a cover story on an issue of ''[[Film Threat]]'' magazine.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Fantastic 4 Marvel Won't let You to See |url=https://proudlyresents.com/fantastic_4/ |website=Proudly Resents: The cult movie podcast |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831033530/https://proudlyresents.com/fantastic_4/ |archivedate=2019-08-31 |date=10 August 2014}}</ref> By this time, the world premiere was announced to take place at the [[Mall of America]] in [[Bloomington, Minnesota|Bloomington]], [[Minnesota]], on January 19, 1994, with proceeds from the event earmarked for the charities [[Ronald McDonald House]] and [[Children's Miracle Network]].<ref name=itop218>Ito, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=SF8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22the+film+switches+from+live+action+to+cartoon%22&pg=PA218 218]</ref>

Suddenly, the premiere was halted, the actors received a cease and desist order on all promotion from the producers, and the studio confiscated the negatives.<ref>{{cite web |date=August 10, 2015 |author=Steve Huff |title=Fantastic Four Fizzled at the Box Office But Roger Corman's 'Lost' Version is Here to Save The Day |url=https://www.maxim.com/entertainment/fantastic-four-fizzled-box-office-roger-cormans-lost-version-here-save |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422211441/https://www.maxim.com/entertainment/fantastic-four-fizzled-box-office-roger-cormans-lost-version-here-save |archive-date=2018-04-22 |publisher=Maxim |access-date=17 May 2017}}</ref> Eichinger then informed Sassone that the film would not be released. Speculation arose that the film had never been intended for release, but had gone into production solely as a way for Eichinger to retain rights to the characters; Stan Lee said in 2005 that this was indeed the case, insisting, "That movie was never supposed to be shown to anybody," and adding that the cast and crew had been left unaware.<ref name=itop108>Ito, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=SF8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22lee+is+talking+about+a+far+different+movie%22&pg=PA108 108]</ref> Corman dismissed Lee's claims, stating "We had a contract to release it, and I had to be bought out of that contract [by Eichinger]".<ref name=itop218 /> Eichinger called Lee's version of events "definitely not true. It was not our [original] intention to make a B movie, that's for sure, but when the movie was there, we wanted to release it."<ref name=itop218 /> He said future [[Marvel Studios]] founder [[Avi Arad]], at this point, in 1993, a Marvel executive,

{{blockquote|...calls me up and says, "Listen, I think what you did was great, it shows your enthusiasm for the movie and the property, and ... I understand that you have invested so-and-much, and Roger has invested so-and-much. Let's do a deal." Because he really didn't like the idea that a small movie was coming out and maybe ruining the franchise.... So he says to me that he wants to give me back the money that we spent on the movie and that we should not release it.<ref name=itop218 />}}

Arad recalled in 2002 that while on a trip to [[Puerto Rico]] in 1993, a fan noticing Arad's Fantastic Four shirt expressed excitement over the film's upcoming premiere, of which Arad said he was unaware. Concerned how the low-budget film might cheapen the brand, he said he purchased the film "for a couple of million dollars in cash" and, not having seen it, ordered all prints destroyed, in order to prevent its release.<ref name=itop219>Ito, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=SF8EAAAAMBAJ&q=%22So+what+happened%2C+really%3F+Arad%22&pg=PA219 219]</ref>

Although never officially released to the general public, but exhibited once on May 31, 1994, ''The Fantastic Four'' has been subject to [[bootleg recording]]s. The film is available to be watched on [[YouTube]] and [[Dailymotion]] for free.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newsarama.com/20178-doomed-the-untold-story-of-roger-cormans-the-fantastic-four.html |title=DOOMED! The Untold Story of Roger Corman's THE FANTASTIC FOUR |publisher=[[Newsarama]] |date=29 January 2014 |access-date=17 May 2016 |archive-date=August 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814193225/https://www.newsarama.com/20178-doomed-the-untold-story-of-roger-cormans-the-fantastic-four.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Critical reception==
On the review aggregation website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film has an approval rating of 27%, based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 4.00/10.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10005582-fantastic_four/ |title=Fantastic Four (1994) |publisher=[[Fandango Media]] |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=August 28, 2023 }}</ref> Clint Morris of ''Film Threat'' magazine said of a copy of the film he obtained, "[Y]es it's terribly low-budget and yes it's derisorily campy and feebly performed, but at the same time there's also something inquiringly irresistible about this B comic tale that makes you wonder why it didn't get a release somewhere along the line. Even if it does resemble ''[[The Toxic Avenger (1984 film)|Toxic Avenger]]'' [more] than, say, ''[[Spider-Man (2002 film)|Spider-Man]]'' ... The script isn't actually all that bad and some of the actors—notably Michael Bailey Smith—are actually quite good here, and with an extra polish I think they might have been able to release this thing."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.filmthreat.com/reviews/3839/ |work=[[Film Threat]] |title=''The Fantastic Four'' |first=Clint |last=Morris |date=November 5, 2002 |access-date=January 1, 2013 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130214023804/http://www.filmthreat.com/reviews/3839/ |archivedate=February 14, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Neil Calloway of Flickering Myth said "the production values are of a 1990s [[daytime soap]], with some rather clunky dialogue."<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.flickeringmyth.com/2015/08/the-fantastic-four-film-you-werent-meant-to-see/ |title=The Fantastic Four Film You Weren't Meant To See |date=2015-08-02 |work=Flickering Myth |access-date=2018-02-07 |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Aftermath==
{{main|Fantastic Four in film}}
Eichinger continued negotiations to produce a big-budget adaptation, speaking with directors including [[Chris Columbus (filmmaker)|Chris Columbus]], [[Peyton Reed]], and [[Peter Segal]]. After pre-production briefly went underway in 1996, Eichinger and his company began production in 2004 of ''[[Fantastic Four (2005 film)|Fantastic Four]]'' (2005), released by [[20th Century Fox]], with an estimated $90 million budget.<ref name=itop219 /> Following that film's 2005 release, Eichinger and Constantin produced a $130 million [[sequel]], ''[[Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer]]'' (2007).<ref name="mojo">{{cite web |url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=fantasticfour2.htm |title=''Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer'' |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=January 1, 2013}}</ref> A critically panned [[Fantastic Four (2015 film)|reboot]] for the film series was released in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://screenrant.com/fantastic-four-release-date-2015/ |title='''Fantastic Four' Reboot Gets A 2015 Release Date'' |date=December 8, 2012 |publisher=[[Screen Rant]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612162422/http://screenrant.com/fantastic-four-release-date-2015/ |archive-date=2018-06-12 |access-date=January 14, 2014}}</ref> In 2019, [[The Walt Disney Company]] obtained the co-production and distribution rights to the Fantastic Four after [[Acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney|acquiring]] [[21st Century Fox]].<ref name="DisneyFoxDealClose">{{Cite web |last=Szalai |first=Georg |date=March 19, 2019 |title=Disney Closes $71.3 Billion Fox Deal, Creating Global Content Powerhouse |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/disney-closes-fox-deal-creating-global-content-powerhouse-1174498 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190320053600/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/disney-closes-fox-deal-creating-global-content-powerhouse-1174498 |archive-date=March 20, 2019 |access-date=March 21, 2019 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]}}</ref> Marvel Studios, now owned by Disney, are currently producing ''[[The Fantastic Four: First Steps]]'' (2025), set in the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]].<ref name="SDCC2022">{{Cite web |last=Vary |first=Adam B. |date=July 23, 2022 |title=Marvel Studios' Phases 5 and 6: Everything We Learned at Comic-Con About the Multiverse Saga |url=https://variety.com/2022/film/news/marvel-studios-phase-5-phase-6-multiverse-saga-comic-con-1235323893/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220724165117/https://variety.com/2022/film/news/marvel-studios-phase-5-phase-6-multiverse-saga-comic-con-1235323893/ |archive-date=July 24, 2022 |access-date=July 24, 2022 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last1=Couch |first1=Aaron |last2=McClintock |first2=Pamela |date=February 14, 2024 |title=''Fantastic Four'' Cast Revealed for Marvel Movie |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/fantastic-four-movie-cast-1235213252/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214162512/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/fantastic-four-movie-cast-1235213252/ |archive-date=February 14, 2024 |access-date=February 14, 2024 |magazine=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]}}</ref> Joseph Culp, who portrayed Doctor Doom in the film, has released a petition on [[Change.org]] to get the film released by Marvel Studios.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 27, 2024 |title='The Truth Must Be Told': Canceled Fantastic Four Movie Star Calls for Release 30 Years Later |url=https://www.cbr.com/original-doctor-doom-fantastic-four-film/}}</ref>

==''Doomed'' documentary==
{{main|Doomed!: The Untold Story of Roger Corman's The Fantastic Four}}
A documentary about the film was released on July 10, 2015.<ref>{{cite web |title=Doomed! The Untold Story of Roger Corman's the Fantastic Four |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3113456/ |website=IMDb |access-date=1 May 2017 |date=10 July 2015}}</ref> Titled ''[[Doomed!: The Untold Story of Roger Corman's The Fantastic Four]]'', it featured interviews with Corman and others in the cast and crew explaining what transpired with the film and its production.

==In popular culture==
In 2013 a main story arc in [[Arrested Development (season 4)|fourth season]] of the television series ''[[Arrested Development]]'' concerned the character [[Tobias Fünke]]'s attempt to stage a musical based on The Fantastic Four. The setup for the story concerned his romantic relationship with DeBrie Bardeaux ([[Maria Bamford]]), an actress who had played Susan Storm in an unreleased ''Fantastic Four'' movie. This backstory parodies the development of the 1994 Corman movie<ref>{{cite web |url=http://comicbook.com/blog/2013/05/27/arrested-development-pokes-fun-at-fantastic-four-rights-situation/ |title=Arrested Development Pokes Fun at Fantastic Four Rights Situation |access-date=April 23, 2015}}</ref> and the storyline is an extended satire on various comic book rights battles.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0109770|The Fantastic Four}}
* {{YouTube|id=eN0FoR_FlZg|title=''The Fantastic Four''}}
* {{Internet Archive film|id=youtube-28EyQ4a3OEA}}
* {{cite AV media |url=http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/episodes/2005/04/01 |title=The B Side (Roger Corman interview) |publisher=The Leonard Lopate Show, New York Public Radio |date=April 1, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110127112028/http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/2005/apr/01/ |archive-date=January 27, 2011 |url-status=live}}

{{Fantastic Four in popular media}}
{{Marvel comics films}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fantastic Four, The (unreleased film)}}
[[Category:Fantastic Four films]]
[[Category:1990s action adventure films]]
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