(UTV | COLOMBO) – New leak claims John Krasinski plays Mr Fantastic in Marvel’s Doctor Strange 2
What began as fan casting might soon be reality. Unconfirmed leaks about the upcoming Marvel film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness claim that actor John Krasinski is all set to appear in the film as Reed Richards aka Mr Fantastic, a part that fans have lobbied for him to be cast in.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is part of MCU’s Phase 4 and sees Doctor Strange deal with the fracturing of multiverse that his botched spell caused in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Given the multiverse theme of the film, it was reported that the film would feature cameos from several actors playing different versions of popular Marvel characters.
A new leak reported by The Illuminerdi claims that one of the cameos features Reed Richards aka Mr Fantastic, who will be played by The Office and Jack Ryan star John Krasinski. John has been a fan favourite for the role ever since a few years ago, Marvel Comics introduced a bearded version of the character, who resembles the actor. There have been several petitions and even fan art with John dressed as Mr Fantastic but nothing official has come in from Marvel yet.
Last year, certain reports had claimed that John had been signed to play Mr Fantastic in the film while his wife Emily Blunt had been roped in to play his character’s wife Sue Storm aka Invisible Woman. However, Emily was quick to shut down these rumours. In May 2021, speaking on The Howard Stern Show, Emily had said, “That is fan-casting. No one has received a phone call. That’s just people saying, ‘Wouldn’t that be great?’”
But such denials don’t mean much to Marvel fans anymore. After all, Andrew Garfield vehemently and repeatedly denied being a part of Spider-Man: No Way Home for two years before eventually appearing in it. Fans have been further emboldened by John’s willingness to appear in Doctor Strange 2. “I think to be a part of the Marvel world would be amazing anyway, and the fact that people would even consider me for that level of a part would be amazing,” the actor told last year.
In the comics, Reed Richards is the leader of the Fantastic Four, which comprises of himself, his wife Sue Storm aka Invisible Woman, brother-in-law Johnny Storm aka The Human Torch, and Ben Grimm aka The Thing. The character has already appeared on screen in two separate Fantastic Four franchises. It was played by Ioan Gruffudd in the 2005 film Fantastic Four and its 2007 sequel. Miles Teller portrayed the character in the 2015 reboot of the film.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will release in theatres on May 4 this year. It stars Benedict Cumberbatch in the lead role, apart from Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Wong, and Xochitl Gomez.
According to Deadline, the film has just wrapped up reshoots. Some reports claim that the reshoots are part of Marvel’s efforts to increase the number of cameos in the film. Reports claim that having seen fans’ appreciation for Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s appearance in No Way Home, Marvel Studios wants to replicate that with more fan service in the Multiverse of Madness.