Emmy-winning Black Bird actor Paul Walter Hauser is in demand in Hollywood, recently being cast as Chris Farley in a biopic on the fallen funnyman and taking an as-yet-unknown role in Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four.

Fans of Marvel’s “first family” are hoping for a fitting big-screen bow for the foursome, following the infamously scuttled low-budget Roger Corman movie back in 1994; a pair of financially successful but fan-drubbed movies in the early 2000s; and the franchise-killing Fantastic Four reboot in 2015.

The new film, slated for a July 25, 2025, release, has Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic; Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/the Invisible Woman; Joseph Quinn playing Johnny Storm/Human Torch; and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing.

Hauser tells The Hollywood Reporter of the property, “That movie has not fully been nailed just yet.”

However, he adds the previous attempts “didn’t weigh in as I was deciding whether or not to take the job.”

He also says, “I really do think the combination of the screenplay, and the department heads that are working on the film, and that classy cast of really exciting actors — some of them known for a long time, and some of them having a moment right now — [make me feel that] this movie is special, and it was something I wanted to be a part of.”

The movie’s director, WandaVision veteran Matt Shakman, previously worked with Hauser on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. “To come back together and collaborate on this movie in some capacity, it’s really exciting. I’m excited to be a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe,” the actor says.

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