While audiences eagerly await the team's franchise debut, new Marvel Cinematic Universe Fantastic Four fan art casts Cillian Murphy as iconic villain Doctor Doom. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, Doom has largely served as The Fantastic Four's main antagonist in the 60 years since he made his comic book debut, while also facing off against the likes of Spider-Man, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and the Avengers. Born Victor Von Doom, he would transition into the villain known as Doctor Doom after one of his experiments resulted in his face being left horribly scarred, in part to Ben Grimm tampering with his machine, and traveling the world and learning sorcery from Tibetan monks and Morgan le Fay, granting him the abilities to harness energy absorption and projection, manipulate electricity, and create protective shields, amongst other things.
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After appearing in a variety of animated shows between the '60-'80s, Doctor Doom was initially set to make his live-action debut with the Roger Corman-produced Fantastic Four movie in 1994, though the project would go unreleased. Doom would properly debut with 2005's Fantastic Four movie, with Julian McMahon portraying the villain and returning for its 2007 sequel Rise of the Silver Surfer, while Toby Kebbell would take on the mantle for Josh Trank's maligned 2015 Fantastic Four reboot. Following the Disney-Fox merger, the rights to the Fantastic Four property reverted to Marvel Studios, with plans for an MCU-set reboot, and one fan is sharing their thoughts on who should join its roster.
Shortly after a release date was announced for the reboot, artist BossLogic took to Instagram to share new MCU Fantastic Four fan art. The image imagines Cillian Murphy as Doctor Doom, with the caption saying he will "forever pitch" the Peaky Blinders actor as the iconic villain. Check out the exciting fan art below:
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After languishing in development for three years, the MCU Fantastic Four reboot recently got a positive update as WandaVision director Matt Shakman entered talks to helm the film this past week. Audiences have been left wondering who will make up the cast of the first superhero family, namely after John Krasinski appeared as Fantastic Four leader Reed Richards in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, only to meet his demise by the vengeful Scarlet Witch. With Kevin Feige confirming that the new Fantastic Four movie won't be an origin story, the door does seem open for Krasinski to return as Reed Richards, all the while rumors have circulated about You star Penn Badgley being eyed for the role.
Should Krasinski return for the reboot, Cillian Murphy appearing as Doctor Doom in the MCU's Fantastic Four movie would fit well with the non-origin story nature of the project, matching the age of his A Quiet Place Part II director and thus making an effective foil for the superhero team. It would also mark Murphy's first appearance in the comic book genre since his final turn as Dr. Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises, having played the iconic Batman villain throughout the whole trilogy, which also is sure to keep audiences' interest piqued in his taking up the Doctor Doom mantle. With D23 right around the corner, it will be interesting to see if the MCU Fantastic Four reboot's cast is announced in the coming weeks.