Fantastic Fourreboot directorJosh Trankrevealedin an interview last month thathis “hard sci-fi take” on the Marvel comic books was similar to the early films ofDavid Cronenberg. While we’ll have to wait until August 7 to see if that comparison is valid,David Cronenberghimself revealed in an interview withColliderthat he thinks it’s a compliment that his work helped influenceJosh Trank’s theme and tone onFantastic Four. Here’s what he had to say below.
“It’s fine. Once you’ve contributed your voice to the cinematic conversation, it’s out there and it’s up for grabs, absolutely. So I don’t complain. In fact, I take it as a compliment.”
He also added that this is nothing new for him, stating the 1979 classicAlien"ripped off" certain aspects of his 1976 filmShivers, which also featured an alien parasite that bursts out of the host’s chest.
“As far back asAlien, for example, which totally ripped off things from my movieShivers-Shiversfeatured a parasite that lives in your body, bursts out of your chests, jumps onto your face, and jumps down your mouth, and suddenly you see this in a studio film, which was hugely successful,Alien. The writer of the script, Dan O’Bannon, had seenShivers, we know that he had seen my movie and, shall we say, appropriated it. So this is not new stuff for me.”
The filmmaker added that he’s gladJosh Trankactually admitted to referencing his work, since many other filmmakers would not do so.
“When you come up with something original and it really strikes a chord in people, it’s going to be imitated, it’s going to be appropriated, and it’s actually kind of nice when someone just flat out admits it. That’s actually pretty good. Not everybody does.”
In the January interview,Josh Trankspecifically said thatDavid Cronenberg’s early moviesScannersandThe Flyheavily influenced the look of hisFantastic Fourreboot. Are you looking forward to a “hard sci-fi take” on these Marvel superhero characters? Let us know what you think, and stay tuned for the next trailer, as we get closer and closer to the August 7 release date.
