It's hard to tell which project MCU fans are more excited about: Thunderbolts* or The Fantastic Four: First Steps. On the one hand, you have a bunch of returning, beloved characters in Thunderbolts*. On the other hand, First Steps features the MCU introduction of numerous classic heroes. Some new quotes from First Steps director Matt Shakman might tip the scales in favor of Marvel's First Family.
Marvel would not be the company it is today without the Fantastic Four. Marvel Comics as an entity only exists because Jack Kirby and Stan Lee brought the foursome to life in 1961 and saved the fledgling company and brought DC Comics some genuine superhero competition. Although the group may not have the outrageous popularity they did throughout their '60s heyday, the FF is still quite popular with the Marvel fandom at large. That being said, their cinematic outings haven't exactly set the world on fire over the past two decades. 2005's Fantastic Four and 2007's Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer do have their fans, but 2015's FANT4STIC debacle was a genuine disaster for both 20th Century Fox and Marvel. John Krasinski was brought into the MCU for a cameo as Mr. Fantastic in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, much to fan-casters' delight, but he didn't add much to the proceedings. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is just the latest in a long line of FF projects to try and bring the supergroup's popularity to the masses.
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In an exclusive with Empire, Matt Shakman laid out his vision for bringing Marvel's First Family to life: "It's about JFK and optimism. It’s imagining these four going into space instead of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. This idea is that they are the most famous people in America because they’re adventurers, explorers, astronauts — not because they're superheroes. And they come back, and they're superheroes on top of it. But primarily they're astronauts, they're family.” The director continued, "I really wanted it to feel like it was made in 1965, the way Stanley Kubrick would have made it."
The Fantastic Four: First Steps Director Matt Shakman Is Bringing Some Old-School Flare To The MCU
Empire elaborated in their exclusive that Shakman and the production team on The Fantastic Four: First Steps went so far as to use a 14-foot-tall miniature spaceship on set, a la Stanley Kubrick on 2001: A Space Odyssey. Though the director elaborated that there were plenty of CGI shots in the film (um, duh), it's nice to know that the creative minds on the project went the extra mile when it came to getting that classic '60s feel.
The Fantastic Four feels more at home in the 1960s than any other superhero team. There is just something about the group's aesthetic that fits that time period so perfectly. Look to Fox's 2015 reboot film for proof of that. Having the Fantastic Four start out in the MCU with a pure 1960s-esque retro-futuristic vibe is a great choice from the jump and Marvel Studios seems to be intent on knocking that motif out of the park.
Just how the First Family with fare when worlds collide in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars is yet to be seen, but all signs about their debut trek in the MCU are positive thus far. Casting beloved stars like Pedro Pascal, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Vanessa Kirby alongside up-and-coming actors like Julia Garner and Joseph Quinn seems like another great job done by MCU casting director Sarah Halley Finn. That she managed to nab character actors such as Paul Walter Hauser, Natasha Lyonne, Ralph Ineson, and John Malkovich is just the icing on the cake.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is set to be released in theatres on July 25, 2025.
- Release Date
- July 25, 2025
- Runtime
- 115 minutes
- Director
- Matt Shakman
Cast
-
Pedro PascalReed Richards / Mister Fantastic -
Vanessa KirbySue Storm / Invisible Woman
WHERE TO WATCH
- Writers
- Jeff Kaplan, Josh Friedman, Ian Springer, Eric Pearson, Kat Wood, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee
- Producers
- Kevin Feige
- Franchise(s)
- Marvel Cinematic Universe
Source: Empire