Summary
The Fantastic Fourhas just started its production. Joining the team is makeup artist Barrie Gower, who will help the actors transform into their characters.
Marvel’s first family will return to the big screen next year, starringPedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Eben Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/Thing. In the previousThe Fantastic Fourfilms, Michael Chikli, who played The Thing in 2005’sFantastic Fourand 2007’sFantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, wore prosthetics to be in character. Aside from him, many characters in the film warrant prosthetics and makeup for an overall character transformation, like Galactus, Silver Surfer, and Mole Man.To help the production, Gower joined the creative team as Fantastic Four’s prosthetic designer.
A fan account dedicated to giving updates about theFantastic Fourshared the news onX, formerly Twitter. Gower, a makeup artist and prosthetic designer, has gained a reputation for his works inGame of Thrones, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, The Last of Us,Stranger Things, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, The Iron Lady,The Witcherand House of the Dragon. Gower led the team behind the monstrous look of Jamie Campbell Bower’s Vecna inStranger Thingsand the zombie-like Clickers inThe Last of Us. He had been nominated twice for Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup at the 2023 Emmys for his work inThe Last of UsandHouse of the Dragon. Bower has won Emmys multiple times already – three times forGame of Thrones and once forStranger Things. Gower is also part of the makeup and prosthetic team forThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. He just shared some photos of the characters onInstagramahead of Amazon’s new trailer for its second season.
In a previous interview, Gower shared that his job is part of his lifelong passion. He had always felt that it was his calling to be part of a film production behind the scenes. Hesaid, “I’m one of those annoying people who knew very early on what I wanted to do for a career, in my early teens, really.” Gower grew up in the north of England and his dad managed a cinema. As a teenager, he was heavily involved in arts – mostly drawings and sculptures. However, one time, he came across the magazineFangoriawhich highlighted the works of makeup artists in Hollywood and that sparked his interest in his current profession.
Gower said:
It showcased all their work. And there were lots of how-to demonstrations in [it] of how things were made. I was a big fan of monster movies, and creatures, and I couldn’t believe when I saw in this magazine that you could do this for a living — people actually made these things and got paid for it. So, I was very much on a mission, quite early on.
Gower’s addition toThe Fantastic Fouronly takes the film to another level. Marvel fans have great expectations, especially those who are aware of his previous works. Among the characters that might use prosthetics in the movie are Mole Man, Silver Surfer and Galactus. Marvel announced thatPaul Walter Hauser, John Malkovich and Natasha Lyonne were joining the cast in undisclosed roles. There are rumors that Hauser will be theMole Manand Gower will likely be the man behind the former’s transformation into his villain character. It’s also exciting to see how the film will present Mole Man’s moloids. Another character who will likely wear prosthetics is Moss-Bachrach. However, according to him, unlike Chikli’s case, he won’t be wearing a prosthetic suit. He said onJimmy Kimmel Livethat the suit was uncomfortable and they would bring The Thing to life with motion capture and CGI. However, that’s something fans should wait and see. But there’s definitely more to look forward to in the film with Gower on board.
