X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR and SILVER SURFER to stay at FOX!!!

Well folks, today's Variety (story found here) has a story about the extending of rights to X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR and the SILVER SURFER for what appears to be another 2 years.

Right now, according to the article, Bryan Singer and crew are in the midst of pre-production preparing to shoot beginning this Summer.

The article then goes on to say that FANTASTIC FOUR is on schedule to be seen in late 2000 or (more likely) 2001. In regards to the FF project, currently they have a draft of FANTASTIC FOUR based on a rewrite by SAM HAMM. Now I really love Sam's work, still the best comic book scripts written by the hand of man come from his fingertips (BATMAN and BATMAN II) both of which were later butchered by devils and demons in the rewrite hell of Warners, BUUUUUUUT I prefer Michael France's original draft of FANTASTIC FOUR.

Don't get me wrong, Sam's draft is fine, but it seems to have been a budget draft as several BIG things were toned down, and well... This really doesn't HELP the movie. When dealing with films like X-MEN and FANTASTIC FOUR.... you are dealing with films that are very much about pushing further and harder than we've seen effects films push. Yes, it's expensive, but if it is done right, all the way right, then audiences will return over and over again. Kids will buy the toys, teenagers will buy the toys, geeks will buy the toys... Mechanic... Rothman... You guys have seen the future of effects films, Lucas has shown you alot of, if not all of STAR WARS EPISODE ONE... After that film.... you won't be able to 'half-ass' the big projects. His film is very much about unbridling the imaginations of filmmakers. Go back to the bigger drafts... let loose with imaginations and visions of things we have never seen.

That's what these types of films were meant to do...