Despite the first Fantastic Four film getting a sequel the franchise never set the box office alight the way 20th Century Fox hoped, which meant that a third film received no green light. However, according to IESB Fox may be planning on giving the franchise a reboot.
The two films previously released never really caught on with the fans and the studio is reportedly looking to completely retool, recast and recrew the franchise. This means no Tim Story, no Iaon, no Julian (thank the maker, he never sat well with me as Dr. Doom), no Chris, no Chiklis and no Jessica.
The franchise is looking to be “less bubble gum” this time round following the Iron Man template, which was a complete success in reviews and box office take but a bit darker when it came to its superhero. Iron Man was in no way as dark as The Dark Knight but was funny, action-y as well as a bit on the serious side.
20th Century Fox have a deal with Marvel which means they have to put the X-Men rights into use otherwise they go back to Marvel after 4 years (hence X-Men Origins: Wolverine, X-Men: First Class), so I’m guessing they have a similar deal with the Fantastic Four rights. A third film wouldn’t be worth making so a reboot seems like the only option. However, I think it’s a bit too early yet. The public may have welcomed a Hulk reboot but soon they will notice a pattern with all of the failed first attempts getting a makeover.
