Fantastic Four: First Steps (United States, 2025)

A loving ode to the Fantastic Four comic books of the 1960s and 1970s, Fantastic Four: First Steps is unlike any other MCU movie in two regards. First, its faithfulness to its source material can be found as much in its tone and style as in its content. Secondly, this represents a rarity for the cross-connected, multi-franchise platform: a standalone story. By virtue of its being set in an alternate universe where superheroes are limited to the titular team, there is no need to wonder about the presence or absence of other ultra-powered people. No Avengers? No problem. There's something incredibly refreshing – not to mention creatively freeing – about this. Removing the shackles of canon and continuity allow First Steps to breathe. 

One could argue that this movie is as guilty as any other recent MCU entry of waving a magic wand to facilitate a conclusion. I suppose that’s fair – the film's climax is a little underwhelming. But there are two things to note. Although First Steps gets its inspiration from Marvel's 1966 "Galactus Trilogy", this is not a rigorous adaptation – numerous changes have been made to update certain elements of the story (no Watcher or "ultimate nullifier" deus ex machina, for example). And the movie is more about making introductions to both heroes and villains than telling a richly-detailed story. It's like cracking open a comic book and diving in. And this may be the closest any 21st century Marvel movie has gotten to replicating that singular, tactile experience. The only thing missing is the earthy smell of the yellowing pages. 

The movie begins with a retro "Marvel" logo that recalls the era in which the story occurs – a late-1960s futuristic version of New York City. For those who care (and there are many), a caption announces that the movie transpires on "Earth-828" to differentiate it from "Earth-616", home of the MCU. Although this is not an "origin story" for the Fantastic Four, it briefly recaps their transformation from astronauts to superheroes and their early days of protecting the planet. When we catch up with the family-oriented team, they have been active for four years. 

The quartet – comprised of their leader, Reed "Mr. Fantastic" Richards (Pedro Pascal); his wife, Sue "Invisible Woman" Storm (Vanessa Kirby); her brother, Johnny "Human Torch" Storm (Joseph Quinn); and Reed's best friend, Ben "The Thing" Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) – are crime-fighters and celebrities. First Steps takes about a quarter-hour following their everyday lives in the Baxter Building, where Herbie the Robot acts as a combined butler/maid. During these sequences, we learn that after two years of trying, Sue has become pregnant. This introduces the hitherto taboo concepts of sex and procreation into the puritanical MCU. (Well, outside of Deadpool, that is.) But when the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner) pays Earth a visit, the Fantastic Four discover a foe they are unable to defeat…and it gets even worse when they learn she is the herald of the World Devourer Galactus (Ralph Ineson), who is on his way to dine on the planet. 

Presenting Galactus as a live-action villain (as opposed to an animated one) has always presented stumbling blocks, the most obvious of which is the character's appearance: a giant figure wearing purple and blue armor. In an attempt to address this issue, 2007's Rise of the Silver Surfer re-imagined Galactus as a giant gas cloud – an abomination decried by fans far and wide. In introducing the World Eater to the MCU, the filmmakers, including studio honcho Kevin Feige and director Matt Shakman, opted to go for a comics-accurate depiction, trusting that audiences have seen enough hard-to-swallow things in the past 18 years to justify the Jack Kirby version. As a leap of faith, that has proven to be a valid one – Galactus is a bold, terrifying entity – a force of nature whose immediacy makes him all the more credible as one of the greatest foes the people of Earth have encountered. 

First Steps is an appropriate name for the movie since the focus is on building and refining the relationships within the team as they navigate the intertwined challenges of turning away Galactus and coping with the care of a newborn. Which is more monumental? While the action-heavy scene in which the Fantastic Four first encounter the Devourer of Worlds represents the height of the movie's spectacle elements, some of its best scenes focus on the joyful (and not-so-joyful) ups-and-downs of parenting. My favorite: installing Franklin's car-seat into the Fantasticar. (Boy does that hit home.) 

Shakman so deeply infuses First Steps with a retro comic aesthetic that it's hard to imagine fans of the book title not swooning over this adaptation. One wonders, however, to what extent the mainstream portion of the MCU's audience will accept the more fantastical aspects of the story. At about 115 minutes, the film is surprisingly (and thankfully) short, but it's an appropriate length. Although Galactus is an epic figure, this is not necessarily an epic narrative. It feels like an appetizer; unfortunately, the next time we see the Fantastic Four, they will no longer left to their own devices in this cozy home world. 

Of the four cast members of the team, Vanessa Kirby leaves the strongest impression, although her delivery scene isn't quite on the same level as the one from Pieces of a Woman. Pedro Pascal brings a quiet, understated intensity to Reed and Joseph Quinn's generally upbeat approach is a pleasant contrast to the brash brattiness of Chris Evans' portrayal. Except in flashbacks, Ebon Moss-Bachrach is buried under The Thing's costume but the actor effectively projects the character's isolation and longing for human connections outside of his "family." As the Silver Surfer, Julia Garner feels underused, but Ralph Ineson's Galactus delivers an impact consummate with the antagonist's size. 

As a means to finally bring the Fantastic Four into the MCU, First Steps is as successful in its own way as Spider-Man: Homecoming was. In addition to representing an apology for the previous big-screen botching of Galactus, the film puts all the foundational pieces into place. If this ultimately proves to be little more than a setup, it's nevertheless a worthy way to start the next phase of the multiverse-saturated saga. Its greatest strength is its celebration of the comic book series that spawned it – something that has sadly been missing from far too many recent Marvel films.

Fantastic Four: First Steps (United States, 2025)