After appearing in Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness, Marvel has been searching for a permanent lock for the leader of the Fantastic Four, Mister Fantastic. Ahead of the upcoming film, Marvel is reportedly in talks with Pedro Pascal to possibly play Reed Richards.

Mister Fantastic, also known as Reed Richards, first appeared in Fantastic Four No.1 by creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Since his debut, Richards has led Marvel’s First Family through many hardships with his elastic abilities.

Journalist Daniel Richtman broke the news on his Patreon account. According to Hollywood Reporter, the casting has not been completely locked in, with some sources reporting that scheduling is a factor in whether or not it will work out. Marvel has currently not commented.

Pascal has recently seen incredible success in HBO’s The Last Of Us and has made a splash in the Star Wars universe as the Mandalorian. He also worked with HBO before on Game Of Thrones as Dornish prince Oberyn Martell.

While casting Mister Fantastic would be a significant step towards getting the new Fantastic Four film off the ground, it still leaves Human Torch, Invisible Woman, and The Thing left to cast. The potential casting of Pascal would give the MCU sturdy legs to stand on, but they would still have to be careful of the other team members’ casting.

The helmer of WandaVision, Matt Shakman, is set to direct the film, with Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer working on the script’s first draft. Josh Friedman worked on the latest version.

Fantastic Four is set to release on May 2nd, 2025.