How Julia Garner Is Overcoming Recent Backlash

Julia Garner is handling backlash over her character in “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” like a pro. Some fans took issue with the fact that Garner was stepping into the role of Silver Surfer, which many thought should be played by a man. 

Garner spoke to BBC News about initial fan reactions, explaining, “Oh well, you know … I was like, ‘I’m just going to still do my job.” The actor went on to explain that the iteration of the character she is playing in the film is not the same as the one featured in 2007’s “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.” 

“Also, it’s Shalla-Bal, so it’s different,” Garner said. Shalla-Bal was first introduced in the comic “Silver Surfer #1” in 1968, as the female counterpart of Norrin Radd. The confusion might stem from the fact that “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer” was focused on Norrin Radd, who was played by Doug Jones and voiced by Laurence Fishbourne.

Garner’s Silver Surfer Has Already Gone Viral

“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” is set to premiere on July 25, and boasts an all-star cast including Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Vanessa Kirby, John Malkovich, Natasha Lyonne, and others. 

But it’s Garner’s Silver Surfer who has already gone viral on TikTok, as fans got a glimpse in a clip released by Marvel. It was her voice that became a sensation though, but Garner didn’t even realize it.

“To be honest, I don’t even have a TikTok,” the “Ozark” actor told Entertainment Tonight. “… my friends were sending me all these TikToks and I couldn’t even open it.” Garner went on to say, “I’m just happy that people are liking it.”

Garner Wasn’t the Only Cast Member to Receive Backlash

While the genderswap issue with Garner’s Silver Surfer was a point of contention with some fans, the actor was not the only one in the film whose casting received criticism. 

Pascal, who plays Reed Richards in “Fantastic Four: First Steps,” felt the backlash from fans who said he was too old to embody the role. 

“I think that sometimes the outside will find you no matter how much you try to protect yourself from it, and it just comes with the territory,” the star of “The Last of Us” shared with AP News. Pascal added, “… I just was a little bit more sensitive to the love that people have for stories like this.”