News broke yesterday that Marvel Studios had registered a new production company in the UK. The cosmic circus can add to this report that the new British company, 4Vibes Productions UK LTD, is for a new TV show. In other words, not a movie, and therefore not the long-awaited The Fantastic Four restart the movie.
It’s been an eventful week for Disney+, with the conclusion of Obi Wan Kenobi and the release of episode 3 of Ms. Marvel featuring the dastardly ClanDestin. We also revealed the likely working title of the anime project. X men ’97. 4Vibes Productions is the latest in what has been a ton of development work behind the scenes at Marvel.
Since The Ronin first reported about the new Marvel company, there has been a lot of speculation as to what project this might be for. The popular theory around Twitter and Reddit was that it was a Fantastic 4 movie which Christopher Mark of The Ronin also speculated. We can explain why that’s probably not the case – and it has to do with how companies are set up and registered in the UK.
In the UK, where 4Vibes Productions is registered, you must choose a category from a long list called the Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities – or SIC. Motion pictures and television programs have different codes. According to these codes, 4Vibes Productions is a television show. Now, it’s always possible that Marvel will update the filing and change the category later, but that seems unlikely in this case.
There is no American counterpart company yet, which makes us think that filming for the TV show will begin in the UK. Recall that Marvel’s filming partner, Pinewood Studios, has a considerable footprint there. Marvel titles like Ms. Marvel, moon knightand the next Secret Invasion were all shot there.
So if 4Vibes Productions is not for the Fantastic 4, what could it be? We have a wicked theory that should still make fans of the superhero team happy.
4Vibes Productions could be for a Doctor Doom series
We think that 4Vibes Productions may actually be for one of the greatest comic villains of all time – Doctor Doom. He made his first comic appearance in Fantastic Four #5 (by Kirby, Leeand Sinnot), and there have long been rumors that Marvel wanted to do something with the iconic villain. Let’s see why we think the name alludes to a standalone project for the infamous Latvian leader.
First of all, the number “4” immediately makes you think of Fantastic 4, but Marvel is often not very straightforward with the names of their production companies. Misdirection is the norm so Marvel can keep details under wraps. Either way, this 4 is probably hinting that this is a Fantastic 4 related project. And few villains are more closely tied to Fantastic 4 lore than Victor Von Doom.
The vibranium connection
We think the “Vibes” part of the name is perhaps the most intriguing clue to the project’s purpose, and once again has a strong connection to this iconic villain. In this case, we believe “vibes” is not just a sentiment but a reference to Vibranium – the metal with cold kinetic energy properties found in Wakanda that can absorb vibrational energies.
So if “Vibes” is Vibranium, and 4 doubles in “for”… the working title could mean “For Vibranium”. This meaning again connects quite strongly to Doctor Doom who has chased, stolen, and used Vibranium many times in the comics. He is well known for his work and experimentation with powerful metal. The Doctor Doom series could draw inspiration from a rich history in the comics as we explore how he gets more Vibranium and how he plans to use it. We can see a few places in the lore that would be exciting to explore in a show.
First, Doctor Doom created a Vibranium suit. During the six-issue comic series fatal warhe stole Wakanda’s metal and created an entire set of armor and evil minions. Plus, there are even more Vibes and Doom links that have nothing to do with Vibranium.
Doctor Doom’s HQ, otherwise known as Castle Doom, has a giant vibration machine in its foundation. The vibration machine was used as a self-destruct mechanism in the past. Doom also built a vibrating bomb which he used for mind control. The satellite was eventually destroyed by Darkroth before it was fully activated, but would have allowed the genius villain to cause untold damage.
Final thoughts on this theory from the Doctor Doom series
Previous live-action versions of Dr. Doom were animated by Pinch/Tuck actor Julien McMahon in the Fantastic Four films of 2005 and 2007. Toby Kebbell played the villain in the 2015 film. But could Marvel really make a TV show about a villain?
Making a villain like Doctor Doom likable enough for a TV show would be an exciting challenge. But Pmaybe they’re looking to use a Doom TV series for character building in the run-up to the Fantastic 4 film. After shows like Loki and Wanda Visionit certainly doesn’t seem out of the question.
Could we be wrong and this is for a completely different Marvel project? Sure. But it’s fun to speculate and we think we have a pretty solid theory here. But What do you think 4Vibes productions is for? Do you agree with our theory that 4Vibes Productions is for a Doctor Doom TV show? Please join the conversation and share your thoughts with us on Twitter @MyCosmicCircus.
