The Marvel Cinematic Universe has recast its characters a few times, but there’s one in particular that fans agree is for the best.
When you think of MCU characters like Bruce Banner or James Rhodes, it might shock you to remember they were once portrayed by different actors.
Mark Ruffalo’s Banner is iconic, but in the character’s original debut he was played by Edward Norton.
Meanwhile, Rhodey was originally played by Terrence Howard before being recast with Don Cheadle.
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More recasts have happened since then, of course. It’s only natural that a continuity as long-running as Marvel will need to cast new actors in older roles from time-to-time.
Marvel fans are particularly grateful for another recent recast, in which they generally agree is a better fit for the role compared to the last actor that played the character.
The role in particular is Reed Richards, a member of the Fantastic Four, who has appeared in several live-action forms over the years.
Richards has been played by Alex Hyde-White, Ioan Gruffudd, and Miles Teller in past Fantastic Four films.
However, these appearances are not canonically part of the MCU.
For his MCU debut, Richards appeared in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness played by John Krasinski.
Krasinski appeared in more of a larger cameo placed in the middle of the film, set in an alternate dimension that Strange travels to, and was never intended to be the MCU’s main Reed Richards.
Another version of the character will return in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, played by Pedro Pascal.
Considering Pascal is also set to appear in Avengers: Doomsday next year, it looks like this version of the character is set to stay in the MCU.
“Is it a hot take to say that I'm glad John Krasinski wasn't brought back to play Reed?” writes a post on the Marvel Studios Reddit page.
“A lot of people didn't like Krasinski in the role,” wrote a comment in the replies. “The major issue with his portrayal was probably the writing, but he gets blamed for that.”
“Krasinski is not really leading man material to me,” wrote another comment. “That Fountain of Youth movie was so boring and it just felt like he lacks any chemistry with the cast.”
“Pedro is a significantly better actor though and a big name,” a third comment wrote.
“He can take any role really with his range and his status brings or will bring fans to theatres.”
We’ll get to see how well Pascal does in the role when The Fantastic Four: First Steps releases in cinemas on 25th July, 2025.
