EXCLUSIVE: Simon Kinberg Tapped to Write 'Fantastic Four'

"I have a lot of ideas on how to built those brands and do what everybody is thinking of these days: Be like Marvel," Kinberg tells The Hollywood Reporter. "I want to be able to build stories over multiple movies."

Kinberg is one of the town's more prolific writer-producers. He's a producer on Cinderella for Disney; worked with Neill Blomkamp on Elysium and now Blomkamp's follow-up, Chappie; and has his hands in the Star Wars universe with a gig writing and producing one of the upcoming movies while also co-creating and exec producing the TV series Star Wars Rebels.

But Kinberg considers Fox his home. He made his first film as a writer at Fox, 2005's Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and his Genre shingle has been based at the studio since 2010. Aditya Sood is president of production and Josh Feldman is director of development. "They've always been incredibly generous with me and trusting me with movies," Kinberg says of Fox. "They treat me like a partner and not an employee."

"Simon is one of the best out there," says 20th Century Fox production president Emma Watts. "We feel very lucky that he calls Fox his home and hope to build our slates together for many years to come."

STORY: Expect the 'X-Men' and 'Fantastic Four' Movies to Cross Over

Kinberg says he doesn't just want to focus on franchises or established brands. The goal is to make original projects or adaptations of works that he believes deserve a wider audience. "There is a special kind of satisfaction on working on a story that no one has ever heard before," he says.

Rust, an adaptation of an Archaia graphic novel, could get the green light next year. Carlos Saldana, who directed Rio, is slated to make his live-action directorial debut on the robot feature, which Kinberg hopes will evoke an Amblin-esque tone.

Also in the works is an adaptation of The Martian, an e-book by Andy Weir, which has Drew Goddard on board to write the script and direct.

Kinberg is repped at CAA and attorney Karl Austen.

Email: Borys.Kit@THR.com

Twitter: @Borys_Kit