The five principle actors for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer — Ioan Gruffudd (Reed Richards / Mr. Fantastic), Jessica Alba (Sue Storm / Invisible Woman), Chris Evans (Johnny Storm / Human Torch), Michael Chiklis (Ben Grimm / The Thing) and Julian McMahon (Dr. Doom) — joined us in one of the Vancouver Film Studios stages.
The session was originally scheduled to take place in an outside hospitality tent, but was brought indoors due to the sub-freezing temperatures in Vancouver that week. Even this indoor location was chilly and uncomfortable for some, with numerous space heaters set up around the perimeter, and each actor clothed in several layers, including jackets and even gloves and toques.
As most of the filming for the week was taking place at night, the actors were relaxed for this mid-afternoon session as their first assignment of the day. While a press meeting is rarely an actor’s favorite part of the film-making process, the mood was playful and jovial between them and engaging with the crowd.
Behind the five folding chairs was a huge wall of green screen and the three full-sized individual pod props of the split Fantasticar.
Q: Can you tell us about the new and improved Doctor Doom and how much fun is it being more evil this time?
Julian McMahon: Well, I didn’t know I was. Really? I think there’s a part of my personality, and you know after doing the movie the first time I became a bit of an *sshole and I’ve put that into the evilness of this character. No, I think he’s just a little bit more evil because he’s coming back for revenge, I think and then we have the new suit, which is pretty extraordinary. I just wore it for the first time last week. It looks amazing. I can’t tell you too much about it, but it’s very evil. But at the same time, it’s not that evil. I always pictured this as a bit of a kids movie, so you can’t be so evil that the little kiddies can’t be watching it. But, it’s been fun. I haven’t been here the whole time like these guys have. I’ve been kind of flitting in and out, because I’ve been shooting my TV show at the same time, so I haven’t been as immersed this time around as I was last time. It’s been good fun and it’s been evil.
Q: Can I ask each of the cast members to briefly talk about what’s new or different for your characters this time around?
Chris Evans: I think everyone has the arc. They made sure everyone has a journey. I think Johnny just, in the first one I think Johnny was kind of a one-man show and wanted center stage. I think the reason Fantastic Four has always succeeded as a group of superheroes and as a comic book is that they’re a family, they’re a unit, a group. I think Johnny has come to know and respect that. In this movie he learns to appreciate the relationships around him.
Jessica Alba: Nothing’s changed. [laugh] I have longer hair and more blond… kidding. You know, we’re much more mature in our characters as superheroes and so this definitely is a product of that. We’re all very much a family. We all live together. We’re getting married, that’s sort of the centerpiece for my character and this movie is about the wedding. She’s sort of bride-zilla, in the best way. She’s stressed. It has nothing to do with you Julian, sorry.
McMahon: Getting married? To him?
Alba: Yup, to him. Not you. To him.
Ioan Gruffudd: Yes, finally Reed Richards is taking center stage, and about time too really. He’s come more to the forefront. He’s much more comfortable with his role as the leader, and as sort of the father figure of the family. I’m delighted about that. He’s a lot more interesting character to play compared to the first one where he was a little bit more nerdy or dorkish. This time I’m stepping up to the plate and becoming the leader. And of course our relationship — between Sue and I — is much more intimate, much more real. It’s more three-dimensional and involved. Jessica talked a little bit about how we’re much more comfortable now being superheroes. It’s kind of like we’re, ’cause we are actors and people watch us through our work and we’re sort of commodities. The Fantastic Four appreciate themselves to be commodities and sort of sell themselves as commodities as well as being superheroes. That’s an interesting aspect.
Michael Chiklis: As far as Thing is concerned, he’s taken another step in his relationship with Alicia in this picture. You know, he’s the lovable curmudgeon. If Reed is the brain of this outfit, I would think that Benn Grimm would be the heart. He’s a lovable curmudgeon. He’s much more come to grips with his malady, as well as being a superhero. He’s also a lot of the conscience and strength of the group. As a complement to everybody else who is watching this, I always thought like Chris said before, that separately we’re pretty fantastic but together they’re obviously much more powerful as a group.
Q: Michael, I’ve heard that your suit is lighter and some changes were made. Can you talk about what kind of improvements to expect from the Thing this time around?
Chiklis:The first time, I talked a lot at nausea actually to the point where I couldn’t stand hearing my own voice about it, where it was a pretty uncomfortable situation. You know, it was a main concern coming into this one that it not be the same. It was very experimental and there wasn’t a lot of time to look into it. The last one didn’t even have a zipper. You know, not even a pant zipper. So it just made it like a 45 minute ordeal to urinate. Frankly, sorry. Yeah, that’s lovely. So, there were things… the heaviness. The hero suit itself isn’t much improved meaning when I’m dressed in the Fantastic Four car, that you really can’t fake because he’s bare chested. Fortunately, I’m only about 25% of the movie in that one. In the rest of the movie it’s quite really cute, I think. You see him in a tuxedo, for example. So when I’m dressed in wardrobe, we’ve been able to use a much more light-weight material that breaths that creates the appearance of bulk without the intense discomfort and it’s able to come off and on very, very quickly. So this has been a markedly more comfortable experience and much more helpful, frankly.
Q: For each of you I was wondering what the movie means to you.
McMahon: Other than the paycheck? I feel a little repetitive because this is the second time around, but I was a big fan of the comic book and the cartoon. I always thought Dr. Doom was the most evil guy on the planet, until Darth Vader came around and then I thought Darth Vader was, and then they were kind of one and the same in a way, so to be able to play that character and to play in that super hero genre. It’s ridiculous, it’s just fun! As an actor, playing an evil guy you get to do silly fun stuff.
Chiklis: We’ll it’s really about good battling evil, and about a dysfunctional family. People relate to it because they all have their own dysfunction in their own families. It’d be hard pressed to find a family that isn’t dysfunctional.
McMahon: It’s also a comic book, which gives you license to be a little bit different than you would be with any other character.
Evans:Yeah, I agree. I think it’s just a great opportunity to play a superhero. It’s kind of like every little boy’s dream, so in that regard it’s a great character to land. Any film that’s this big and this exposed, it’s good to kind of get your face out there and have meetings like this.
Chiklis: Speak for yourself.
Evans: Sorry man.
