logo
‘Fantastic Four' Star Julia Garner Says She's ‘Gonna Still Do My Job' Amid Backlash to Silver Surfer Genderswap

‘Fantastic Four' Star Julia Garner Says She's ‘Gonna Still Do My Job' Amid Backlash to Silver Surfer Genderswap

Yahoo14-07-2025
Julia Garner doesn't care what people think about her playing Silver Surfer in 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps.'
While speaking to BBC at the film's London premiere, Garner was asked about the initial response from some fans who thought a man should play the Silver Surfer. The 'Wolf Man' star said she didn't pay much mind to the discourse and focused on delivering her best version of the character.
More from Variety
Pedro Pascal Says 'I'm More Aware' of Backlash Over 'Fantastic Four' Casting 'Than Anything I've Ever Done': 'He's Too Old. He's Not Right. He Needs to Shave'
'The Fantastic Four' Director Matt Shakman Reveals the 'Magical' Comics That Inspired the Film in 'Small and Large Ways' (EXCLUSIVE)
Anthony Boyle to Play Sam Bankman-Fried Opposite Julia Garner as Caroline Ellison in Netflix's FTX Series 'The Altruists'
'I said, 'I'm just going to still do my job,'' she said of the backlash. She also noted that she plays a variation on the character, adding, 'Also, it's Shalla-Bal, so it's different.'
Shalla-Bal, first seen in 'The Silver Surfer' #1 in 1968, is the female counterpart to Norrin Radd, who was featured in 2007's 'Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.' In that film, the humanoid alien was played by Doug Jones and voiced by Laurence Fishburne.
As the BBC notes, after the first 'Fantastic Four' trailer debuted, the response to Garner's Surfer was overwhelmingly positive. Garner said she was excited to see the hype from fans.
'I was just happy that people are resonating with it, just like any other project,' Garner added. 'I'm grateful to be at this dance, to be completely honest with you.'
Other cast members include Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, aka Mr. Fantastic; Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, aka the Invisible Woman; Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm, aka the Human Torch; and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm, aka the Thing. Ralph Ineson plays Galactus, while Paul Walter Hauser, Natasha Lyonne and John Malkovich round out the cast.
Best of Variety
Final Emmy Predictions: Talk Series and Scripted Variety - New Blood Looks to Tackle Late Night Staples
Oscars 2026: George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez, Julia Roberts, Wagner Moura and More Among Early Contenders to Watch
New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Jimmy Fallon Ridicules Trump's Choice Words About Epstein Island
Jimmy Fallon Ridicules Trump's Choice Words About Epstein Island

New York Times

time8 minutes ago

  • New York Times

Jimmy Fallon Ridicules Trump's Choice Words About Epstein Island

Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night's highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now. Better Luck Next Time While in Scotland on Monday, President Trump told reporters he'd never 'had the privilege' of visiting Jeffrey Epstein's island. 'Trump's staff was like, 'A simple no would've been fine,'' Jimmy Fallon said. 'Trump said he was invited to the island but didn't want to go. I get it — it's so annoying when you get invited to a destination crime scene, isn't it?' — JIMMY FALLON 'Trump was like, 'I'm sorry, what I really meant was I never had the honor.' — JIMMY FALLON '[imitating Epstein] 'Hey, Donald, want go to the island this weekend?' '[imitating Trump] Well, first of all, Jeffrey, thank you for thinking of me. Unfortunately, that's the weekend that the teen pageant that I bought is installing the indoor security locker room cameras.'' — JON STEWART '[imitating Trump] Sadly, I never had the honor of dining with Jeffrey Dahmer.' — STEPHEN COLBERT 'Privilege was not the word you wanted to use. '[imitating Trump] A trip to that terrible island was sadly not an honor that was ever bestowed upon me.' — SETH MEYERS ''Privilege' makes it seem like you never turned down an invitation. It seems like you were checking your messages every day in hopes one was forthcoming. He'd be like, [imitating Trump] 'Any calls from Jeffrey?' ' — SETH MEYERS The Punchiest Punchlines (Ball-Drop Edition) 'Last time I saw a ball-drop that obvious, Anderson and Andy were hammered.' — STEPHEN COLBERT, on Trump's caddy moving his ball to a better position during a round of golf in Scotland 'When the going gets tough, the tough pay someone to cheat for you.' — JON STEWART 'It turns out golf has rules, and one of them is that if you lose a ball, you take a one-stroke penalty, and you have to hit again from the previous spot. Plus, a serious player would always drop a ball themselves, rather than leave it to a caddy. In his defense, Trump has not seen his own balls in years.' — STEPHEN COLBERT 'It's just refreshing to see someone cheating without being at a Coldplay concert.' — JIMMY FALLON The Bits Worth Watching Las Culturistas co-hosts Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers presented Stephen Colbert with an award for Best Future Podcaster on Monday's 'Late Show.' What We're Excited About on Tuesday Night Alison Brie will discuss appearing in the new horror film, 'Together,' with her husband, Dave Franco, on Tuesday's 'Tonight Show.' Also, Check This Out In search of a new side hustle, numerous stars of reality television have branched out into

NBA Legend Blows Minds by Sharing Video of Him Shooting Hoops in the Most Unusual Location
NBA Legend Blows Minds by Sharing Video of Him Shooting Hoops in the Most Unusual Location

Yahoo

time24 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

NBA Legend Blows Minds by Sharing Video of Him Shooting Hoops in the Most Unusual Location

NBA Legend Blows Minds by Sharing Video of Him Shooting Hoops in the Most Unusual Location originally appeared on Parade. is one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA, so it's not too surprising to see him pull off a baller move, but even longtime fans may be a bit stunned by the video the Magic Man posted on his official Instagram account on Monday, July 28. The clip, soundtracked by 's 1984 hit 'Basketball,' begins with a bird's eye view of a basketball court, but it's not just any court, it's on a yacht on a port in Barcelona, Spain, and Magic, dressed in all white, is seen sinking shot after shot. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 'It was nice to be back in Barcelona, Spain where I won my gold medal with the Dream Team! I'm back shooting hoops, not in an arena this time, but on a yacht! 😁,' Magic captioned the post. Fans and some of Magic's fellow pro ballers, both still active and retired like Johnson, and other celebrities, were quick to comment. Returning Los Angeles Clippers star posted, '🔥🔥🔥.' 'The greatest Point Guard of ALL TIME!!!!🔥🔥,' wrote hip-hop producer . 'The Magic Man!,' posted former NBA star 'Big Dawg!!!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🐐,' wrote . 'Living his LIFE!!❤️,' posted music star . 'The Ultimate BALLER,' added retired former NBA star . As Johnson mentioned in his post, he was part of the U.S. Men's Basketball squad known as the 'Dream Team' that took the gold medal in 1992 in the summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. It was the first U.S. Olympic team to include active NBA players with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, John Stockton, Karl Malone, Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing and others joining Magic on the roster. The 'Dream Team' was so dominant that it outscored its opponents by an average of 44 points per game on its way to taking the gold metal against Croatia. NBA Legend Blows Minds by Sharing Video of Him Shooting Hoops in the Most Unusual Location first appeared on Parade on Jul 29, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 29, 2025, where it first appeared.

Julia Garner reveals intense audition process for Madonna biopic, had to 'convince her that I can dance'
Julia Garner reveals intense audition process for Madonna biopic, had to 'convince her that I can dance'

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Julia Garner reveals intense audition process for Madonna biopic, had to 'convince her that I can dance'

Garner said on the "SmartLess" podcast that the planned movie about Madonna's life is "supposed to still happen."Key Points Julia Garner recently discussed the intense audition process for Madonna's planned biopic. EW previously reported that Garner was still attached to star as Madonna after the film's delay. Garner said on the SmartLess podcast that the film is "supposed to still happen."Julia Garner had to tackle some difficult preparation material, girl, ahead of landing the role of Madonna in the pop icon's long-gestating, self-directed biopic. The Fantastic Four: First Steps actress and Ozark alum was a guest on Monday's episode of the SmartLess podcast, during which she told cohosts Will Arnett, Sean Hayes, and Jason Bateman that the audition process for the movie was an intimidating one — and that the delayed film is, to her knowledge, still happening. "I just remembered, were you supposed to play Madonna at some point? Is that going to still happen?" Hayes asked, with the 31-year-old responding, "Yeah, I mean, that's supposed to still happen." She then fielded inquiries about landing the role, telling the trio that she's "such a fan of Madonna's" and "grew up listening" to the legendary pop star. "It just came about. I knew they were doing a project, making a movie about it, and then I went out to audition," Garner recalled. "I kind of just wanted to see if I could do it, because I wasn't a trained dancer and I had to learn how to dance and then dance in front of her and convince her that I can dance, basically, and sing. And sing with her!" To calm her nerves, the three-time Emmy winner said that she "just thought, 'Okay, what would Madonna do?' Which is convince you that she deserves, you know, to be in this room, and I owned it. I was kind of like, 'You can take it or leave it, but if you leave it, if I leave, then that's on you.'"Garner again confirmed that the film is still in the works. "But I also feel like anything that's great" indeed "takes a long time" to come to fruition. EW has reached out to representatives for Madonna for more information. Garner first landed the role in 2022, but the project was delayed and subsequently removed from Universal's slate in early 2023 so Madonna could travel the world on her successful Celebration tour. On the tour, Madonna regularly brought special guests on stage to perform with her, including Garner, who joined Madonna for a segment themed to the hit "Vogue" in New York City. Madonna eventually returned to work on the film in 2024, and EW confirmed at the time that Garner was still attached to star. Last July, Madonna shared on Instagram a glimpse of herself revising the movie's screenplay while seated behind a typewriter, with a photo showing that the previously untitled film was, at least then, titled Who's That Girl — a nod to both Madonna's 1987 comedy film and its accompanying No. 1-charting soundtrack single of the same name. Oscar-winning writer Diablo Cody and Madonna finished work on their version of the screenplay in 2021, with the Juno scribe departing the film to work on other projects after that. Madonna then partnered with Erin Cressida Wilson on the story, which she previously indicated would follow her "struggle as an artist trying to survive in a man's world as a woman, and really just the journey." She went on to describe the time in her life as a "happy, sad, mad, crazy, good, bad, and ugly" tale of the making of a superstar, including such milestones as her rise through the entertainment industry, releasing "Like a Prayer," starring in Evita, and her relationship with Jose Gutierez Xtravaganza and Luis Xtravaganza, two members of New York City's Harlem ballroom scene who played an influential part in shaping the success "Vogue." Earlier, in January 2022, EW additionally exclusively reported that Uncut Gems star Julia Fox met with Madonna to discuss boarding the project in the role of Madonna's longtime friend, Debi Mazar, whom she first met inside an elevator at New York City's iconic Danceteria club in the '80s. Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly Solve the daily Crossword

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store