Latest FANTASTIC FOUR Casting Rumor: Josh Gad As The Thing

Okay, this one comes from Movies.com, which should make it more believable than it sounds.

They say that there is only one name on Fox’s short list to play Ben Grimm in the Fantastic Four reboot, and that name is Josh Gad.

Gad, seen to the right, broke on to the national scene through his role on Broadway in The Book of Mormon. He has since gone on to make his name in Hollywood. You might remember him from the short lived sitcom 1600 Penn and most recently from voicing Olaf the Snowman in the recent hit, Frozen.

Movies.com seems to be quite enthusiastic about the rumor, but I can’t seem to join them. Don’t get me wrong, I think Gad is talented but wrong for the role.

How so? Well, not to start a Gal Gadot-level body shaming controversy, but Gad doesn’t meet the expectation you’d have for Ben Grimm. Yes, he could hit the gym and get in shape, but there are also other actors out there already in shape who can do the role just as well.

But, you might say that the Thing is going to be CGI and what Ben Grimm looks like in his human form is inconsequential. All he’s going to do is provide a voice. That’s my second point. When I think the Thing, I don’t hear Josh Gad.

Here he is in that voice over work in Frozen:

Perfect for THAT character, yes. But the Thing? Not really. When I think of a voice for the Thing, it’s New York-ese filter through a rock grinder. I don’t think Gad is capable of that kind of grit.

Again, this is just a rumor. And the Fantastic Four reboot has had its shared of out there, not true rumors. But there is a trend in these rumors–that Josh Trank is actively playing against what the comic book Fantastic Four is. And that’s a deadly gambit if you want a successful franchise.

Developing.