Doug Jones Backs Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer: “It’s a Different Take”

The Silver Surfer is finally back in theaters. But fans expecting the familiar silver-skinned alien, Norrin Radd, are in for a surprise. The new Marvel movie The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces a very different version of the cosmic character, and it’s getting a lot of attention.

This fresh reboot of Marvel’s First Family comes with a brand-new cast. Pedro Pascal plays Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby takes on the role of Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn is Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach plays Ben Grimm. For the first time in a movie, we also get to see Franklin Richards, the superpowered baby of the group.

But that’s not all. The film also brings back two major cosmic forces from Marvel Comics, Galactus, the planet-eating giant, and his silver-skinned herald, the Silver Surfer. This time, though, things are different. The Silver Surfer isn’t Norrin Radd. Instead, it’s Shalla-Bal, played by Emmy-winning actress Julia Garner.

Garner is best known for her role as Ruth Langmore in Netflix’s Ozark, which earned her three Emmys. She also starred in Inventing Anna, another Netflix series, where she played fake heiress Anna Delvey.

This year has been busy for her. She already appeared in Wolf Man, a horror reboot directed by Leigh Whannell, and she’s also leading the upcoming thriller Weapons, directed by Barbarian filmmaker Zach Cregger.

In the original story, Norrin Radd becomes the Silver Surfer to save his home planet, Zenn-La, from Galactus. He agrees to help Galactus find other worlds to consume, as long as Zenn-La is spared.

But after coming to Earth and meeting Alicia Masters, a kind and blind sculptor, he starts to question his mission. Eventually, he joins the Fantastic Four to stop Galactus.

Shalla-Bal, in the comics, was Norrin’s lover, the person he left behind to become the Silver Surfer. In this movie, it looks like the MCU has reimagined her as the one who becomes Galactus’ servant instead. Norrin Radd’s name hasn’t come up in the trailers or promotional material, so it’s unclear if he even appears in the film.

Recently, actor Doug Jones shared his thoughts on Julia Garner playing the Silver Surfer in the upcoming Marvel movie The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Jones, who famously portrayed the Silver Surfer physically (with voice work by Laurence Fishburne) in 2007’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, reacted positively to the new casting choice and the fresh direction Marvel is taking.

In a brief comment, Jones said: “I love what I’ve seen … It’s a different take on the Surfer … And she does exist in the comic books as well. There’s source material to back her up. So I’m excited to see how they bring that to the film world.”

What happened here is that Doug Jones acknowledged and supported Marvel’s decision to reimagine the Silver Surfer as Shalla-Bal.

Jones’ reaction highlights his openness to change, noting that this version isn’t made up out of nowhere. Shalla-Bal does have roots in the comics, so there’s real material to pull from.

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