Marvel Studios Is Reportedly Eyeing An Oscar Winner To Play Galactus, Perhaps The Biggest Possible Marvel Villain

galactus in marvels what if

Getty Image


Now that Pedro Pascal is on the verge of signing on to play Reed Richards / Mr. Fantastic in Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four, it’s likely not long until the rest of the cast is confirmed.

While nothing is official at this time, the same person who had revealed Pascal’s casting as Mr. Fantastic before it was confirmed by official sources is claiming that Marvel Studios is eyeing Academy Award-winning actor Javier Bardem to play Galactus.

Galactus is perhaps the biggest and baddest Marvel villain in existence, as the character literally swallows galaxies whole.

Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1966, Galactus has primarily served as a Fantastic Four villain but eventually grew into a threat to the Marvel universe at large given his sheer scale.

Bardem, who won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his terrifying work as Anton Chigur in The Coen Brothers’ modern classic No Country For Old Men, is certainly one of the few actors in Hollywood with the gravitas to pull off such a larger-than-life character such as Galactus.

As for the rest of the Fantastic Four cast, rumors indicate that Oscar nominee Vanessa Kirby — recently seen starring opposite Joaquin Phoenix in Napoleon — will play Sue Storm / Invisible Woman, while Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things 4) and Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Bear) will play Johnny Storm / Human Torch and Ben Grimm / The Thing, respectively.

At this time, Fantastic Four — which will be helmed by WandaVision director Matt Shakman — is scheduled to hit movie theaters in the United States on Friday, May 2, 2025. The Fantastic Four film will be a key one for the future of the MCU as it’s set to be the first movie in “Phase 6”.

Not only that but given the Fantastic Four’s history as the “First Family” of Marvel, they’re likely to be integral to the franchise for some time.