A big transformation from The Bear and Stranger Things to Fantastic Four
Moss-Bachrach plays Ben Grimm, aka The Thing in The Fantastic Four: First Steps while his British co-star Quinn gets to have a blast as The Human Torch.
It meant making a move from drama to a comic-book blockbuster - and for Quinn, the opportunity to work with Matt Shakman, the director who made Wandavision's retro spirit a hit with audiences. 'I'd seen Wandavision, and was very taken by the world that Matt set up in that,' says the actor. 'It was so singular and very distinct and very unlike anything else. So the thought of him applying that kind of direction to a feature-length film and the characters that would occupy that film, I was very curious to see what he'd do with it.'
Shakman is again aiming to blend the retro with the futuristic in what is likely to be one of summer's biggest blockbusters. Featuring a cast that also includes Vanessa Kirby, Pedro Pascal and Julia Garner, First Steps focuses on Marvel's First Family as they attempt to blend their roles as heroes with their own personal connections. The film is set during the 1960s, against the backdrop of the space race, when the four astronauts' lives are changed following an exposure that gives them superhuman powers. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, The Fantastic Four debuted in 1961.
Pedro Pascal and Joseph Quinn in The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
'We watched a lot of footage of the Apollo missions,' says Moss-Bachrach. 'We watched a lot of documentary footage from the 60s to place it, to contextualise it. We've come so far from that spirit of optimism and the great space race. It was helpful to get a window into these missions that would embody the hopes and dreams and capture an entire nation. We're such a divided place these days, so I think those were helpful.'
The US actor is best known for playing restaurant manager Richie Jerimovich in global TV hit The Bear. His superhero sidekick Quinn comes to the world of Marvel following his role as Eddie in Stranger Things. Stepping into a Marvel movie marked a different project entirely.
'The scale of production is absolutely massive,' says Moss-Bachrach. 'I've never been on a production, a set like this. I felt like I was in old Hollywood - back lots, sets for hundreds of metres. Really big, deeply thorough, very detailed. It was an incredibly immersive macro and micro experience.'
Because he plays The Thing - best known for his trademark rocky appearance and superhuman powers - Moss-Bachrach worked closely with filmmakers in the motion-capture process. The process uses technology to capture the actor's performance and movement within the character, with the help of digital visual effects.
'It was surprisingly easy,' he says of the experience. 'I thought it was going to be very hard, very different and distinct from normal scene work. But actually, in the end, it was very close to how I'd normally do a scene, except for the fact that I was trusting all these incredibly talented animators to fill me out, make me a bit bigger. But I wasn't playing a monster - I was playing a man.'
Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Pedro Pascal in The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
Both actors come to the film playing characters that fans have long felt a sense of ownership of. Do they feel the pressure of expectation?
'I think it's important to try and not pay attention to that,' says Quinn. 'I think if you're trying to do something where you're aiming for some invisible target that you think people might like, you're doing yourself a disservice. You've got to follow the material, listen to what's happening in front of you, trust your instinct, and go off what the other actors are doing.
'You'll do things in this business where you make something which maybe no one will watch, and sometimes you'll make something which a lot of people want to watch. Integrity feels like a lofty word, but just doing your job is a good mantra.'
Should the new movie featuring these four unlikely superheroes strike a chord with audiences, its stars could well find themselves returning to their roles for further outings within the busy Marvel Universe.
'I guess you're mindful of the fact that, yeah, there is a potential for some longevity with these characters,' says Quinn. 'But thankfully, I really like the character that I'm playing, and so that's kind of out of our hands, whether we'll be playing them for that long. But certainly if I'm able to spend another seven months with this gang, that wouldn't be a bad thing.'
Fantastic Four: First Steps opens in cinemas on Thursday, July 24
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