Why do people not want Joseph Quinn as Human Torch in ‘The Fantastic Four’ (and why they need to lighten up)

Well, it took over four and a half years since the project was announced, but The Fantastic Four cast were finally officially announced on Valentine’s Day 2024. And, thanks to all those rumors, the final foursome were pretty much what we expected. Say hello to Pedro Pascal as Mr. Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Invisible Woman, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as The Thing, and Joseph Quinn as Human Torch. As these stars have been swirling around their roles for months, you might’ve expected the reaction to the announcement to be somewhat muted and laidback.

Come on, this is the Marvel fandom we’re talking about, it was never going to be that. Generally speaking, people seem on board with Pascal, Kirby, and Cousin Ebon as these characters, but the one you might’ve thought would be universally beloved… isn’t. Joseph Quinn may have stolen hearts around the globe when playing Eddie Munson in Stranger Things 4 back in 2022, but now a subset of social media users are rising up against him to complain about his casting as Johnny Storm.

In essence, some folks out there don’t know if Quinn is, well, hot enough to play literally Marvel’s hottest superhero. Johnny Storm is often perceived as an ultra-cocky, womanizer f(lame)-boy, while Quinn was catapulted to fame playing a nerdy, Dungeons & Dragons-playing metalhead. In contrast, Chris Evans (star of 2005’s Fantastic Four and 2007’s Rise of the Silver Surfer) and Michael B. Jordan (2015’s Fantastic Four) were already known as Hollywood pin-ups when they were cast.

Joseph Quinn is the perfect Johnny Storm for the MCU — here’s why

What a lot of those quarreling with Quinn’s casting seem to be missing, however, is that Eddie is just one character he’s played in his career and not the full metric of his acting talent. As it happens, Stranger Things fans have correctly argued that, even though Eddie is far removed from Johnny, Quinn actually exhibited traits in that character that perfectly suit the Human Torch. He got Grace Van Dien to fall for him in, like, one scene. Chrissies, wake up!

Something else that’s key to Johnny Storm? He loves the spotlight. And who managed to steal practically all the limelight away from the main cast in Stranger Things 4? Take a bow, Joe.

This… This is actually a very good point.

The above tweet from @jeremylovesyall may indeed hit the nail on the head. All the signs are pointing to The Fantastic Four being set in the 1960s so Johnny Storm should reflect the look of the heartthrobs of that time. With his dyed-blonde hair, as depicted in the announcement artwork, there is something about Quinn that strongly resembles a sixties boy band member or young actor of the period. Meanwhile, someone with the physique of a mid-aughts Evans would very much not fit the aesthetic and reality of that era.

Following on from Evans and Jordan, who have both become MCU icons themselves, was going to be tough for anyone, but perhaps especially for Quinn, an actor with little movie experience and so intrinsically tied to one role in the public consciousness. Pretty soon, though, we’ll all be saying “Eddie Munson who?” as director Matt Shakman and his team have no doubt found the exact right man for their vision of Johnny Storm. Trust me, he’s going to be fire.