Marvel reportedly tried to get Steven Spielberg to direct the new Fantastic Four movie

When director Jon Watts announced he would be leaving the upcoming Fantastic Four project in order to “take a break” from the superhero genre, many Marvel fans wondered who the studio would get to replace him.

After helming the massively popular Tom Holland-led Spider-Man trilogy, the first time the web-head managed to cross over with the Avengers in the live-action films, Watts was clearly a darling at Marvel.

But when he backed out of the opportunity to helm the first entry into the MCU for Marvel’s first family, the studio announced it would begin an extensive search for a new director. According to a new report, that search included one of the biggest names in directing.

YouTube: Marvel Entertainment

According to a report from Mike Sampson, Marvel apparently reached out to none other than Steven Spielberg about possibly directing the Fantastic Four movie. Apparently, the talks never went beyond the preliminary stage and Spielberg had no interest.

According to Sampson, Marvel wanted to see if they could convince Spielberg to take on the Fantastic Four, but the Jurassic Park director has already expressed that he will retire after his upcoming film The Fablemans.

Also, plenty of rumors out there that The Fablemans could be Spielberg's last, so hard to believe he'd want to sneak in a Marvel movie where he can be micromanaged by the house style

— Mike Sampson (@mjsamps) July 14, 2022

It would seem to be a longshot to land a director of Spielberg’s caliber by Marvel studios, but this does show how extensive the search has been.

While the MCU has made its name with new and lesser-known directors taking their first step into the arena of blockbusters, expectations for the Fantastic Four will undoubtedly be higher than any film in the series outside of the Avengers movies.

Rumors surrounding the cast of the Fantastic Four continue to swirl and fans will be anxiously awaiting any news of the team’s future at the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con.