Credit: Marvel StudiosThe Marvel Cinematic Universe is gearing up to launch one of its most iconic teams in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, with new developments continuing to emerge as the release date nears.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps–What We Know So Far
Set to release on July 25, 2025, the upcoming film–which will launch Phase Six— is directed by Matt Shakman and introduces Marvel’s First Family into the MCU’s mainline continuity. While fans caught a glimpse of Reed Richards via John Krasinski in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), this marks the first proper universe-canon debut for the Fantastic Four.
Pedro Pascal leads the cast as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, alongside Vanessa Kirby as Susan Storm/Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing.
Julia Garner joins as Shala-Bal/Silver Surfer, with Ralph Ineson stepping into the cosmic role of Galactus. John Malkovich, Natasha Lyonne, and Paul Walter Hauser have also been confirmed to have undisclosed roles.
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The project, which began filming last summer at Pinewood Studios in London, features a script credited to Jeff Kaplan, Ian Springer, Josh Friedman, Cameron Squires, Eric Pearson, and Peter Cameron.
The official synopsis of the Phase Six movie reads: “Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family—Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ben Grimm/The Thing as they face their most daunting challenge yet.”
Director Matt Shakman has described Reed Richards and Sue Storm as the respective most scientifically intelligent and emotionally intelligent people on the planet. The pair run the Future Foundation–a philanthropic entity designed to bring peace to humanity.
In the movie, Sue will be pregnant, and motherhood has been confirmed to be a major through-line for the story. Vanessa Kirby recently told Entertainment Weekly that she was keen to incorporate elements of Sue’s comic book alter ego, Malice, into her character to create a more three-dimensional character.
In that same EW feature, new information has come to light regarding The Fantastic Four: First Steps, including a more detailed look at the premise as well as some cultural changes that have been made to specific characters.
“So the new film will be set in the ’60s — just not our ’60s. First Steps is the 37th installment in the MCU, but it won’t be set on the same Earth as Iron Man or The Avengers,” the feature reads.
Instead, the film begins on a parallel world in the Marvel Multiverse where history has unfolded differently. In our timeline, the ’50s and ’60s were full of artists and thinkers who imagined utopian futures full of miracle inventions like flying cars and robot friends. In this world, Reed Richards exists to invent them.”
Shakman, who replaced Jon Watts as director in 2022, went on to confirm the reason behind the iconic family group heading into space. “We knew that we’d be on another Earth, so we had a chance to reinvent what the ’60s looked like,” Shakman told EW.
“I was really interested in imagining the Fantastic Four being astronauts. Instead of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin going to the moon, what if it was Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben who were really the first to go into outer space, the first to push those boundaries?”
The director went on to explain that casting the family was the hardest part of the movie due to their close familial relationship. Perhaps the most distinct change will come with Joseph Quinn’s Johnny Storm, AKA Human Torch.
The character has already been played by both Chris Evans and Michael B. Jordan in 20th Century Fox’s previous movies, and it seems that Quinn will be shedding the rogueish, womanizing persona that is so familiar with Johnny Storm.
“He’s a man that leads with a lot of bravado, which can be an affront sometimes. But also, he’s funny,” Quinn explained. “Myself and [Marvel Studios boss] Kevin [Feige] were speaking about previous iterations of him and where we are culturally. He was branded as this womanizing, devil-may-care guy, but is that sexy these days? I don’t think so.”
The Stranger Things breakout added: “This version of Johnny is less callous with other people’s feelings, and hopefully, there’s a self-awareness about what’s driving that attention-seeking behavior.”
Whether these cultural changes work for audiences will be determined when the movie releases in late July, but as we’ve seen before, too much difference from the source material can leave a sour taste in fans’ mouths. That said, anticipation is high for the arrival of the First Family, and their debut in the first Phase Six movie sets the tone for the final chapter of the Multiverse Saga.
The Fantastic Four in the MCU
Marvel Studios has laid out an ambitious slate for the next few years. Before First Steps arrives, Captain America: Brave New World hit theaters in February 2025. That film, directed by Julius Onah, faced hurdles after poor test screenings and an ongoing boycott controversy, leaving the fourth Captain America entry only just crossing the $400 million global box office mark.
Next in line is Thunderbolts* in May 2025, which will close out Phase Five. Disney has playfully described the team-up as featuring the “least-anticipated group of misfits,” hinting at a gritty, internal-conflict-driven storyline. Thunderbolts* sees the return of a number of recognizable characters, including Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour), Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), John Walker/U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell), and Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko).
One more film was previously scheduled for 2025 but has now been pulled from the calendar. That film was Blade, a reboot plagued by development issues since its announcement by Kevin Feige back in 2019. Despite Mahershala Ali remaining attached to star, the project has struggled with multiple creative shakeups.
Late last year, Disney officially replaced Blade‘s November 2025 slot with Predator: Badlands, directed by Dan Trachtenberg for 20th Century Studios.
Looking further ahead, The Fantastic Four: First Steps won’t be a one-and-done for Marvel’s founding heroes. The team is already slated to appear in Avengers: Doomsday (formerly Avengers: The Kang Dynasty) and Avengers: Secret Wars, releasing in 2026 and 2027, respectively.
Feige outlined the plans during his appearance at San Diego Comic-Con this past August, and a recent record-breaking live-stream confirmed their involvement.
And in a major shift for the franchise, Robert Downey Jr. will return to the MCU in Avengers: Doomsday—but not as Tony Stark. This time, he’ll portray Victor Von Doom/Doctor Doom, a twist revealed during Marvel’s SDCC presentation last year, which also confirmed that Anthony and Joe Russo are returning to direct both upcoming Avengers installments.
Following The Fantastic Four: First Steps July 25, 2025, debut, the MCU will then release Avengers: Doomsday on May 1, 2026, Spider-Man: Brand New Day on July 31, 2026, and Avengers: Secret Wars on May 7, 2027. Alongside these confirmed drops, Marvel Studios also holds slots on February 13 and November 6, 2026.
Nothing has been confirmed for the February and November release dates, so there is a high chance that Kevin Feige’s studio will scrap them both, especially considering Disney CEO Bob Iger’s plan to reduce the MCU slate to two or three movies per year.
How do you feel about these new takes on the Fantastic Four characters in live-action? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!