Incredible FANTASTIC FOUR Concept Art by James Carson

Fantastic 4 concept art by James Carson

Check out Fantastic 4 concept art by James Carson!

In the original appearance of the Fantastic Four, the crew is bathed in "cosmic rays" and crash lands to discover their powers. In the 2005 Fantastic 4 film (also known as Fantastic Four) the crew is hit by radiation and it cuts to Ben Grimm waking up in the hospital.

But it wasn't always that way. I talked to production illustrator James Carson who confirmed that there was a version of the script with the crash landing.

James Carson is a professional concept and storyboard artist who's worked on blockbuster films like Spider-Man, X-Men: First Class and Captain America: The First Avenger.

Check out the rest of the images after the jump (click to enlarge).


Accident
I asked Jim, if the crew was supposed to crash on Earth like in the comics? "It was a long time ago," said Jim, "But yes I believe Doom's crash was in the original script. At least there was a plan for that at some point."

Baxter Building
"The most fun illustration? Probably the exterior Baxter Building. We incorporated a mish-mash of different architectural and design elements - like it was built a little at a time whenever they could afford to add something. But it also needed to work together as a cohesive structure. I thought it turned out nicely."

Von Doom's Office
So, what was it like making illustrations for the film? "They were all fun," James Carson said, "It was great working with Production Designer Bill Boes - quite a talent. He also looks a little like Neil Young, which is a plus. And the rest of the crew was also great."

See more of James Carson's portfolio at http://jamescarsondesign.com

Click on the links if you want to see more of James Carson's work and Fantastic 4 on my blog.

What do you think of the concept art? If you've seen Fantastic 4 what did you think?

Official Fantastic 4 Synopsis
"Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis head a sexy, star-powered cast in this explosive adventure about a quartet of flawed, ordinary human beings who suddenly find themselves with extraordinary abilities.After exposure to cosmic radiation, four astronauts become the most remarkable, if dysfunctional, superheroes of all time. Unfortunately, the mission's sponsor has also been transformed into the world's most lethal supervillain setting the stage for a confrontation of epic proportions."
Directed by Tim Story
Cinematography by Oliver Wood
Starring: Ioan Gruffudd, Michael Chiklis, Chris Evans, Jessica Alba, Hamish Linklater
Release Date: July 8, 2005
© Copyright 2005 20th Century Fox, Marvel Enterprises, 1492 Pictures, Constantin Film. All rights reserved.
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