Much of The Fantastic Four: First Steps' Earth-828 was brought to life with practical effects, and we're sure you'll remember set photos showing a "real" version of The Thing.
The character was brought to life with visual effects (unlike the 2005 and 2007 Fantastic Four movies), but this stand-in was used on set to give the cast and VFX artists some much-needed reference material. Now, we know who was in the suit, and it wasn't Ebon Moss-Bachrach.
Actor and professional wrestler Richard Summers-Calvert has confirmed that he was the practical Ben Grimm in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, while sharing new behind-the-scenes photos from the reboot's set.
You can take a closer look at Summers-Calvert as The Thing in the Instagram post below.
Marvel Studios, meanwhile, has released a new deleted scene from The Fantastic Four: First Steps showing Ben Grimm on a dating show. Leaked trailers from D23 and Comic-Con included an early version of this sequence from test footage, and it was clearly shot for real afterwards.
Over the weekend, many fans have discussed the reboot's omission of several scenes from trailers and set photos. However, that's pretty normal for an MCU movie, and it seems much of this material (including the Sunday night dinner scene below) was filmed purely for promo material.
Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel Studios' The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family—Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) as they face their most daunting challenge yet.
Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, they must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner). And if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal.
Also appearing are Natasha Lyonne as Rachel Rozman, Paul Walter Hauser as Harvey Elder/Mole Man, Sarah Niles as Lynne Nichols, and Mark Gatiss as Ted Gilbert. John Malkovich was set to play Red Ghost, but was cut due to time constraints.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is directed by Matt Shakman from a screenplay by Josh Friedman and Eric Pearson and Jeff Kaplan & Ian Springer.
The movie is now playing in theaters.