Pedro Pascal confronts Fantastic Four casting backlash

Pedro Pascal has addressed the backlash he experienced when cast in an upcoming blockbuster movie.

The 50-year-old Chilean actor plays Reed Richards, aka Mr Fantastic, in Marvel's upcoming comic book film Fantastic Four: First Steps.

And while Pascal has been praised for his work in hit TV shows such as Game of Thrones and The Last Of Us, some film fans reacted negatively to him being cast in the summer blockbuster.

Confronting the backlash, the actor told Vanity Fair, "I'm more aware of disgruntlement around my casting than anything I've ever done... 'He's too old. He's not right. He needs to shave.'"

However, he hopes fans will love the movie, explaining, "I'm getting an inkling of excitement because it seems to reflect what our common goal was, and what we want to share, which is all of our f**king hearts on a platter within this genre.

"You just never know if people are going to be disgusted by your heart or not."

The actor will appear in the film alongside British star Vanessa Kirby, who plays on-screen wife Sue Storm, aka Invisible Woman.

Praising Pascal for his work on the set of the film, Kirby gushed, "He doesn't have much armour, so he shows himself to you straight away, and you trust that person because he's revealing himself to you in this very brave way."

The movie also stars Stranger Things actor Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing.

John Malkovich, Julia Garner and Ralph Ineson will also star in the blockbuster - which is due for release next month.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps will be released in cinemas on Friday 25 July 2025.