‘The Fantastic Four’: John Malkovich’s Surprising Role Possibly Revealed

‘Fantastic Four: First Steps’ is one of the most eagerly awaited releases in the MCU. The movie is set to come out on July 25, 2025, based on what we’re seeing from set leaks, so far so good.

The film will take place in an alternate reality and will introduce the Fantastic Four, an already established team in their reality. It’s reportedly bound to feature some of their most famous villains.

The cast for ‘First Steps’ includes Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm, with Moss-Bachrach using performance capture and CGI for his role.

Julia Garner will play Shalla-Bal aka MCU’s Silver Surfer, while Ralph Ineson portrays Galactus, one of Marvel’s most powerful villains (well depending on how you view him). Paul Walter Hauser, John Malkovich, and Natasha Lyonne have been cast in undisclosed roles, with Mole Man also expected to appear.

Additionally, Robert Downey Jr. is rumored to appear as Victor von Doom/Doctor Doom in a post-credits scene.

Speaking of John Malkovich, back when his casting was first announced fans immediately assumed that he is playing Puppet Master, solely based on Malkovich’s physical appearance.

Now according to Charles Murphy of Murphy’s Multiverse, it appears that Malkovich is playing Ivan Kragoff. Ivan Kragoff is a villain in Marvel Comics, known as the Red Ghost. He is a Russian scientist who gains powers after experimenting with cosmic rays, similar to the Fantastic Four. Kragoff can also control three super-intelligent apes—Nameless, Zorba, and Mik-Em—who assist him in his evil plans.

Hopefully, the first trailer for the movie will shed some light on his potential role, as so far the only thing we have are rumors and speculations. We can’t expect a trailer anytime soon, but we do hope for some new footage in a “special look” at D23 Brazil this weekend. Even if it’s not posted online later, we should learn some new details about the movie.

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