Julia Garner is playing the role of Shalla-Bal, a different iteration of Silver Surfer than most fans are used to, and the reception has been mixed.
Shalla-Bal’s Following the Footsteps of Norrin Radd
While Julia will be stepping into the character of Silver Surfer in the MCU’s first dance with the Fantastic Four, she’s not the first one to have played the silver humanoid.
Julia will be following in the footsteps of Doug Jones, who played Norrin Radd in the original Fantastic Four.
Part of the backlash is due to Norrin being a very beloved character amongst the fans and portrayal. Some of it is also due to the Silver Surfer being of a different gender—however, this is what many supporters of Julia are claiming to be straight-up misogyny, which is not all that uncommon when it comes to superhero films and fans.
Julia’s Staying Positive Despite The Backlash
When confronted about the backlash around her character at the London premiere of the film, Julia Garner had a very sweet and unbothered response.
Instead of playing into all the noise and hate, the actress responded to the backlash with a simple yet powerful statement, stating, ‘I’m just still gonna do my job.’
The actress has been a fan of The Fantastic Four and had enough insights on the role and the comics that she was shocked when she was called up for the role. However, even her first response was ‘‘Wait, isn’t the Silver Surfer a man?’’ as she admitted to not knowing of Shalla-Bal.
But this didn’t hold her up. “I was just like, ‘Okay, well, I’ll play anything.’ She laughed. She was already a huge fan of the film’s director, Matt Shakman, and when they met, he gave her all the info she needed.
Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer Is Actually Bringing an Interesting, Menacing Twist
While fan opinion is going back and forth, there’s no denying that Julia Garner is going to bring her A game to the movie. Plus, if you’ve seen the trailer, you already know that her portrayal of the Silver Surfer feels truly evil.
And if we’re being honest, Julia’s Silver Surfer declaring, ‘I herald his beginning. I herald your end. I herald… Galactus.’ was enough to get us absolutely hyped for the movie and to break the internet as well.
As a matter of fact, her serious, over-the-top evil character is the perfect contrast to the Fantastic Four’s ensemble of silly, fun-loving characters—especially Johnny Storm, as we saw in the newest clip released by Marvel.
The Two Silver Surfers Are Deeply Connected.
While we’re on the topic of the new Silver Surfer being ‘different’—let’’s make it clear, we can’t talk about superhero movies without going back to where they all actually stem from, the comic books—where, of course, there are a lot of variations.
The commonality in all comics is that Shalla-Bal and Norrin Radd are lovers and lifetime companions, but in the mainstream comics, Norrin Radd is the one who chooses to make the sacrifice by becoming the herald of Galactus and is forced to separate from Shalla-Bal.
But in the Earth X series, which is closer to what Marvel is adapting, the roles are reversed. Shalla-Bal is the one who makes the sacrifice and becomes the herald of Galactus, being forced to leave Norrin Radd behind.
The opinions usually don’t shape the outcome in the context of superhero films.
Despite all the discourse on who should play what (which is very common in the superhero genre), everyone usually gets proven wrong, and we believe such will be the case with Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer too. She looks and sounds absolutely perfect in the role, and we can’t wait to see more of her performance.
You can just take a look at the recent example of Superman; many people were criticizing the recast of Henry Cavill. But, to no one’s surprise, David Corenswet delivered what many consider the greatest portrayal of Superman, and the film went on to become the most
successful film in the red-and-blue superheroes history.
No Matter What, The Fantastic Four: First Steps Seems As Promising As It Gets
How exactly the story surrounding the Fantastic Four, the Silver Surfer, and Galactus will unfold remains to be seen, but if early reactions, trailers, and Julia Garner’s chilling delivery are any sign, this reboot might become one of Marvel’s most daring cosmic sagas yet.
First Steps could very well become the kind of cinematic swing that reminds us why we love superhero films—and how reinterpretation keeps the genre alive.