The Fantastic Four: First Steps Director’s Cut ‘Not Possible’, Matt Shakman Says, So Don’t Expect to See John Malkovich’s Red Ghost Any Time Soon

Marvel fans won’t get to watch an extended version of The Fantastic Four: First Steps,

It’s no secret that the version of The Fantastic Four: First Steps currently playing in theaters is one that’s shorter than originally planned.

Shortly before the film’s release, Shakman confirmed that the legendary actor John Malkovich had been ditched entirely, while Sue Storm actress Vanessa Kirby has now discussed some of her interactions with Paul Walter Hauser’s Mole Man that were also left on the cutting room floor.

In response, fans have begun calling for The Fantastic Four to get a Snyder Cut-style “Shakman Cut”, with John Malkovich’s Red Ghost character back in the film. (One brief mention of Red Ghost still remains, and we see one of his evil Super-Apes in a montage, but that’s about it.)

However, Shakman has now said that a director’s cut is not going to happen — and given his own reason why.

“There are so many visual effects involved that those scenes remain unfinished, so that’s not possible,” Shakman told EliteDaily. “There was a lot of stuff to balance in this movie, and some things had to go.”

That’s despite Shakman going on to describe the loss of Malkovich’s character as “heartbreaking”, and saying the actor “really crushed” the role.

Marvel has typically shied away from offering director’s cuts of its movies (though the Sony-distributed Spider-Man: No Way Home did get an Extended Version). Some Marvel movies have featured deleted scenes on their DVD/Blu-ray release, though Shakman’s statement that Malkovich’s cut scenes still need effects work suggests we may not see those there, either.

Some fans have said the cuts are noticable, with references made during Mole Man’s brief screentime clearly referencing a relationship built during a now-cut sequence featuring the character and Sue Storm, something that actress Vanessa Kirby has separately elaborated on.

“There was a line within a scene that isn’t in it anymore with Mole Man – who I absolutely love,” Kirby told Variety, saying it would have been a good set up for Storm’s Malice alter ego. “I’m so excited that we might get to do more with him if we get to do any more of this, because Paul [Walter Hauser] is amazing. But in it, she said something like, ‘I could give you an aneurysm if I wanted to in two seconds.’

“In the comics, Sue uses that threat quite a lot: ‘I could put a force field in your brain and give you an aneurysm. I could put an air bubble inside of you and kill you in an instant.’ These powers are also really lethal and really dangerous.”

Regardless of the cuts, The Fantastic Four: First Steps has had a strong box office opening — though it remains to be seen how well the movie continues to perform over the coming weeks. In the meantime, Kirby has been discussing the film’s revelatory mid-credit scene that ties into Avengers: Doomsday.

Image credit: JC Olivera/Variety via Getty Images

Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social