Fantastic Four Star Julia Garner Looks Stunning In First Photos of Her Mo-Cap Suit For The MCU’s Silver Surfer

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Recently released photos from the set of The Fantastic Four: First Steps show Julia Garner, who plays Silver Surfer, wearing motion capture gear. Marvel’s decision to cast Garner (known for her role in the horror film Weapons) as the Silver Surfer back in April 2024 surprised many. They opted for a female version of the character, Shalla-Bal, instead of the traditional male character, Norrin Radd. While this gender swap sparked debate, Garner’s portrayal of the Herald of Galactus quickly gained popularity following previews of The Fantastic Four last year.

Imaginarium Studios, the company founded by Andy Serkis and known for its motion capture work (including on The Fantastic Four: First Steps), shared behind-the-scenes photos on Instagram of Julia Garner performing motion capture for her role as the Silver Surfer. The images show how Garner’s performance was used to create the character digitally.

The post shared a comparison of the finished version of The Fantastic Four with footage from the motion capture shoot, and explained details about how it was filmed. Imaginarium noted that Jennifer Garner specifically focused on capturing the iconic “silhouette and shape” of the Silver Surfer during the performance capture process.

Silver Surfer is instantly recognizable by her unique outline, and Julia paid close attention to capturing that shape when she played the character.

Garner also focused on mastering how Silver Surfer’s cosmic board could move and what it was capable of, particularly highlighted in the First Steps storyline as she chased Marvel’s Fantastic Four through a wormhole.

Julia’s incredible skill shines through in her understanding of how to move on the board and what’s possible when she’s truly connected to it.

As a critic, I’ve seen motion capture – or ‘mo-cap’ – really come into its own. What’s amazing is how filmmakers can now record an actor’s actual performance – every nuance of their movement and expression – and then translate that into a digital character. It’s not just animation; it’s capturing a real performance and building a 3D model around it, which makes the characters feel so much more believable.

Director Matt Shakman reportedly had Garner actually surf a surfboard while filming The Fantastic Four, which helped ensure her movements looked authentic and natural.

In The Fantastic Four, many of Garner’s scenes featured playful, though mostly unreciprocated, romantic interactions with Joseph Quinn’s character, Johnny Storm (the Human Torch).

To film the touching scene where Johnny reached for the surfboard, Quinn was suspended by wires while actor Ben Garner, wearing a motion capture suit, stood opposite her.

Garner wasn’t the only actor who used motion capture technology on the set of The Fantastic Four. Ebon Mass-Bachrach also wore the special equipment as part of his performance as The Thing.

Sources say Marvel Studios is cleverly using motion capture technology in Avengers: Doomsday to keep the identities of two unexpected cameo appearances a secret.

Imaginarium recently shared an interesting deleted scene from the making of The Fantastic Four. It featured a conversation between the Silver Surfer and Johnny Storm inside the Baxter Building, with the rest of the team briefly appearing in the background.

Marvel Studios has released concept art showing early designs for the Silver Surfer, giving fans a peek at how the character almost looked in her first appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. You can now see the artwork on Disney+.

What Comes Next For the MCU’s Silver Surfer?

Rumors circulated that Disney+ was planning a special featuring Silver Surfer, and many believed it needed to be released before the Fantastic Four: First Steps movie. That project didn’t happen, but it could have explored the backstory of Shalla-Bal, which was later revealed through flashbacks in First Steps.

So, the latest buzz from Daniel Richtman is that Silver Surfer might be showing up in the MCU’s upcoming Annihilators movie! Apparently, he’ll be joining a new cosmic team, and it sounds like Star-Lord, played by Chris Pratt, could be leading it. Now, the report didn’t say anything about whether Julia Garner will be back as Shalla-Bal, or if we’ll finally get to meet Norrin Radd, the man under the silver skin. Fingers crossed on both counts!

Marvel Studios is reportedly starting work on a sequel to The Fantastic Four, with Matt Shakman returning as director. This comes after the team appeared in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. However, since the villain Galactus has recently been dealt with, it’s unclear how or when the character Silver Surfer might reappear in future films.

Although Silver Surfer probably won’t appear in Avengers 5 and 6 because those movies already have so many characters, she could join the Marvel Cinematic Universe later on. After Secret Wars, Marvel is planning to focus more on cosmic stories for the next phase of films, and Silver Surfer could play a key role in those future adventures.

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2026-02-28 04:35