Ebon Moss-Bachrach revealed that he has only seen “crude renderings” of himself as The Thing in Marvel’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps. He also said that he is doing a lot of motion capture work, which necessitates a clean-shaven look for optimal facial data capture.
In a recent interview with Variety, Bachrach said, “I’m doing a lot of motion capture on [‘Fantastic Four’],” Bachrach added, “So for maximum-data facial capture, I have to be clean-shaven.”
Recent leaked set images from The Fantastic Four: First Steps in Central London show Moss-Bachrach in his motion-capture suit. Marvel is using practical effects instead of CGI.
According to Bachrach—during the six weeks of production on The Fantastic Four: First Steps—he has only seen “crude renderings” of his character, Ben Grimm, aka The Thing. Bachrach praised the impressive team behind the project, saying, “They got so many amazing animators working on it—literally hundreds of people working on it.” He is eagerly excited to see the final result soon.
Bachrach continued, “They got so many amazing animators working on it, literally hundreds of people working on it.” Bachrach added, “We’ve been shooting for about six weeks, and I haven’t been able to see anything yet, I don’t know exactly what the lead time is. I’m very excited to see something.”
Bachrach said his co-stars Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Pedro Pascal are taking shape as their “Fantastic Four” counterparts. He described their superhero transformations as “beautiful.”
Bachrach said, “You got Joseph Quinn, you got Vanessa Kirby, Pedro Pascal. I mean this is a great-looking crowd.” Bachrach added, “[They have] beautiful hearts, just a pleasure working with these guys. I miss them already.”
Directed by Matt Shakman from the original script penned by Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer, which has undergone a rewrite by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber. In the film, Pascal plays Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing, and Ralph Ineson as Galactus. Julia Garner is set to portray a female Silver Surfer, with Paul Walter Hauser and John Malkovich in undisclosed roles. Additionally, characters yet to be cast include Mole Man and H.E.R.B.I.E.
The film is produced by Kevin Feige, Grant Curtis, and Nick Pepin.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps arrives in theaters on July 25, 2025.
