Even superheroes make time for family dinners.
Marvel Studios on Tuesday debuted its trailer for “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” offering the first proper look at the MCU’s take on Marvel’s First Family and the 1960s-inspired retro-futuristic world it inhabits.
Directed by Matt Shakman, the film stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm. As referenced in the trailer, the close-knit foursome gained superpowers during its first mission into space.
Richards, also known as Mister Fantastic, has the ability to stretch his body to the extreme, while his partner, Sue — a.k.a. the Invisible Woman — is imperceptible and can manipulate force fields. Sue’s brother, Johnny, who can engulf himself in flames, is known as the Human Torch, and Richards’ best friend, Grimm, has been transformed into the Thing — a being made of rocks. In “First Steps,” the Fantastic Four will take on Galactus, a cosmic being that devours worlds, as well as the Silver Surfer (played by Ralph Ineson and Julia Garner, respectively). John Malkovich, meanwhile, plays a mystery character in the film.
While “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” marks the official introduction of the superhero team into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, past takes on the characters were seen on the big screen in “Fantastic Four” (2005), “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer” (2007) and the reboot “Fantastic Four” (2015) when Fox owned the film rights. Last year’s “Deadpool & Wolverine” saw “Captain America’s” Chris Evans reprise his role as Johnny Storm from the first two “Fantastic Four” movies, while a variant of Mister Fantastic, played by John Krasinski, appeared in 2022’s “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.”
The film will also serve to launch Phase 6 of the MCU, which has been revamped to involve well-known Fantastic Four villain Doctor Doom (who will be played by “Iron Man’s” Robert Downey Jr.). “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” hits theaters July 25.
