- The second Fantastic Four trailer reveals the Silver Surfer
- Film to bring beloved characters into the MCU
- Fantastic Four characters to star in next Avengers movies, says Feige
Marvel’s first family are coming home in The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
After 20th Century Fox released its own version in 2005 and a sequel in 2007, a grittier reboot helmed by Chronicle filmmaker Josh Trank emerged in 2015.
When that movie faltered at the box office, the future of the Fantastic Four felt a little lost. Thankfully, things changed when Disney acquired Fox. From there, the characters had the opportunity to become part of the studio’s wider cinematic universe.
Read more: Everything we know about Daredevil: Born Again
With that, Mister Fantastic, The Invisible Woman, The Thing and Johnny Storm were poised for a reboot. Under the directorial eye of filmmaker Matt Shakman, it’ll be one that’ll allow them to interact with the MCU’s growing array of characters.
It’s undoubtedly an exciting time for fans. So when is The Fantastic Four: First Steps released and what will it be about?
Read on to get clued up on all the information we have so far…
When is The Fantastic Four: First Steps released?
The Fantastic Four: First Steps will be released in cinemas in the United States on 25 July 2025. It is expected to arrive in UK cinemas on the same date.
This wasn’t always the plan; the film has changed dates multiple times since it was first announced in 2019.
Originally, the movie set an 8 November 2024 release. This shifted to 14 February 2025 and then 2 May 2025 before landing on its current July 2025 debut date. The changes were made to accommodate other high-profile releases.
The Fantastic Four: The First Steps will be the first film featured as part the MCU’s Phase Six.
Is there a trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps?
The most recent trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps landed on 17 April 2025. It gave us our first proper look at Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer and a glimpse at Galactus’ feet stomping through Manhattan.
Watch it above.
Meanwhile, the first trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps arrived on 4 February. It wasted no time introducing us to Reed Richards and his family.
The short clip gave us a good look at Ben Grimm AKA The Thing, Sue Storm’s Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm’s The Human Torch and Richards’ Mr Fantastic. We also caught a sneaky glimpse at the movie’s villain Galactus.
Before this arrived, attendees of 2024’s San Diego Comic-Con were treated to an exclusive first-look teaser. This gave viewers a glimpse at the tone expected in Marvel’s new movie. Cameraphone footage quickly made its way online, showcasing our first look at Reed Richards and his retro-futuristic world.
Sadly, we’ll all have to wait a little longer to see this teaser in glorious HD.
Who is starring in The Fantastic Four: First Steps?
Primary cast details for The Fantastic Four: First Steps were revealed on Valentine’s Day, 14 February 2024.
Marvel shared an Instagram post confirming that Gladiator 2 star Pedro Pascal would be its new Reed Richards AKA Mister Fantastic while The Crown’s Vanessa Kirby would play Invisible Woman Sue Storm.
Stranger Things star Jospeph Quinn was confirmed as Human Torch Johnny Storm, with The Bear’s Ebon Moss-Bachrach becoming Ben Grimm AKA The Thing.
To celebrate, Marvel released an illustration of each cast member in character, hitting home the film’s family focus and 1960’s-inspired aesthetic.
“Happy Valentine’s Day from Marvel’s First Family! Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn are The Fantastic Four,” said the studio, while confirming the movie’s July 2025 release.
Shakman’s movie went into production shortly afterwards, with filming taking place at London’s Pinewood Studios in late July 2024. To mark the occasion, Pascal shared a behind-the-scenes photo of his new movie family, with the caption “Our first mission.”
After the main cast had been announced, Wolf Man actress Julia Garner signed on, with rumors suggesting she was set to play the Silver Surfer, a character also known as Shalla-Bal in Marvel lore. This was confirmed in November 2024.
In May 2024, actors John Malkovich, Paul Walter Hauser and Natasha Lyonne joined the cast, with The Green Knight’s Ralph Ineson revealed to be playing the villain Galactus. The latter news was confirmed in the movie’s official synopsis.
While still unconfirmed, internet rumours have placed Hauser in the role of a bad guy known as Mole Man.
Will Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom be in The Fantastic Four: First Steps?
So far, it’s unclear whether Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom will make his big-screen debut in The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
During Comic-Con 2024, Marvel boss Kevin Feige took to the stage to reveal that Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame filmmakers Joe and Anthony Russo would be returning to the MCU.
After confirming that they would helm Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, Feige revealed that Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr. would be playing Victor Von Doom – the Fantastic Four’s primary villain, Doctor Doom.
According to movie journalist Jeff Sneider, Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom could be introduced via a post-credit sequence in Shakman’s movie. However, nothing has been officially confirmed or denied by Marvel Studios.
During a virtual appearance at Disney’s APAC Content Showcase in Singapore in late November, Feige confirmed that Fantastic Four’s characters will go “right into the next Avengers movies.”
“[We’re] bringing Marvel’s First Family into the MCU,” explained Feige, as per Deadline. “They wrap next week, the movie comes out next summer, and then all those characters go right into the next Avengers movies, so I’m very excited for the future of the Fantastic Four.”
What is the plot of The Fantastic Four: First Steps?
Marvel issued an official synopsis for The Fantastic Four: First Steps in November 2024, confirming a few things we believed to be true about its plot.
“Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family — Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic (Pascal), Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Kirby), Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Quinn) and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Moss-Bachrach) as they face their most daunting challenge yet.
“Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, they must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Garner). And if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal.”
Before this arrived, not much was known about the plot of The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
We knew the film would not be an origin story, with Feige and Shakman wanting to introduce the characters fully formed similarly to their take on Peter Parker/Spider-Man.
Does The Fantastic Four: First Steps take place in an alternate universe?
Elsewhere, we also knew the film would be set in a familiar past in an alternative universe. As reported by Empire in summer 2024, Feige responded to a question about the film’s setting by saying, “Yes, yes, very much so — it’s a period piece!”
He also hinted at its otherworldly tone, referencing some things that fans had noticed online about artwork related to the movie. “There were a lot of smart people, who noticed that that cityscape didn’t look exactly like the New York that we know, or that existed in the ’60s in our world.
“Those are smart observations, I’ll say,” he said cryptically.
Speaking to Variety during promotion for Gladiator 2, Quinn confirmed that filming on the movie has almost finished. He also added that he had to return to set soon to finish work on the film.
“We made good friends with each other on this film, so to go into a situation where you know each other is just lovely,” said the star.
As of early December 2024, filming for The Fantastic Four: First Steps has reportedly wrapped with the cast and crew believed to have held a wrap party in London where Pascal can be seen alongside a mystery actor.
Pedro Pascal at the wrap party for ‘THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS’ the photo is covering someone’s face. Who could it be?! 👀
— MyTimeToShineHello (@MyTimeToShineH) November 30, 2024
(📸: @cedarstacks) pic.twitter.com/hfqBSXZNG8
During the Spain portion of the movie’s shoot, a mystery actor was also spotted being ushered to set. Could this be the same actor and if so – who are they playing?
A mysterious actor was on the set of ‘THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS’ in Oviedo, Spain.
— Cosmic Marvel (@cosmic_marvel) November 28, 2024
The crew wanted him to remain hidden 👀
(📸: @miibad7) pic.twitter.com/bcoyot0rxx
