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The Fantastic Four: First Steps: your definitive guide to the next Marvel movie (release date, trailer, cast, plot, and more)
Here's everything you need to know ahead of The Fantastic Four: First Steps' release in late July.
- Will launch worldwide in late July
- Trailers released in February, April, and June
- Main cast confirmed in February 2024
- Story synopsis revealed
- Takes place in a parallel universe to the MCU
- Other plot details teased
- Should directly lead into the events of Avengers: Doomsday
The Fantastic Four: First Steps isn't far away now. The third and final Marvel movie of 2025 will be released worldwide on July 25, so the countdown is on until its achieves lift-off.
Before the next Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film takes flight, you'll want the definitive lowdown on The Fantastic Four's next big-screen adventure. In this guide, you'll find plenty of details concerning its trailers, confirmed cast, story specifics, and potential impact on future MCU projects.
Full spoilers follow for Thunderbolts*. Potential spoilers are also discussed for First Steps.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps release date
As mentioned, The Fantastic Four: First Steps lands in theaters on Friday, July 25. It was originally due out last November, but Marvel revised the launch date of its Fantastic Four movie last February.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer
Marvel unveiled The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer in early February, and it revealed official looks at Marvel's iconic quartet of superheroes, the movie's Big Bad in Galactus, and John Malkovich's mysterious character.
Two months later, Marvel debuted First Steps' official trailer, which revealed first looks at Reed Richards' stretchy powers, The Silver Surfer, and other Galactus-sized teases.
That teased also contained footage first presented at CinemaCon 2025, with both trailers confirming a big fan theory about Sue Storm. I'll explain more about that in this article's plot section later on.
In early June, Marvel released one final trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, which confirmed two of the movie's worst-kept secrets, too. Check it out below:
The Fantastic Four: First Steps cast: confirmed and rumored
Here's the confirmed cast for Marvel's latest Fantastic Four movie reboot:
- Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic
- Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/The Invisible Woman
- Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/The Human Torch
- Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing
- Ralph Ineson as Galactus
- Julia Garner as Silver Surfer
- Matthew Wood as H.E.R.B.I.E
- Mark Gatiss as Ted Gilbert
- John Malkovich as TBC
- Paul Walter Hauser as TBC
- Natasha Lyonne as TBC
- Sarah Niles as TBC
Ahead of the first four actors' official unveiling as the titular team, there were an avalanche of casting rumors that sent MCU fans into a tailspin. However, Moss-Bachrach has since told The Jimmy Kimmel Show that he officially signed on in August 2023. One month earlier, Kirby told TechRadar "it would be an honor" to play Sue Storm, which all but confirmed her hiring.
Pascal reportedly held talks with Marvel about joining the cast in November 2023. Then, a February 2024 report revealed Pascal had signed on to play Richards, so the sting was taken out of that surprise. The only shock reveal was Quinn's, with the Stranger Things actor announced as Johnny Storm last February.
World devouring cosmic villain is it? I’ll see what I can do https://t.co/QhCk2v8VCcMay 10, 2024
On the villain front, The Office UK's Ralph Ineson voicing Galactus, aka the movie's villain-in-chief and a regular foe of Marvel's First Family. Ineson will be joined on antagonistic duties by Ozark's Garner, who'll play a gender-swapped version of the Silver Surfer, aka the Herald of Galactus.
Supporting character-wise, Matthew Wood will voice The Fantastic Four's robot assistant H.E.R.B.I.E (per Empire) and, as the second trailer revealed, Mark Gatiss is also involved. He'll portray a news anchor who interviews the titular group.
Hauser, Malkovich, and Niles are also part of the cast and, while their roles remain a mystery, Quinn accidentally revealed (per Omelete.br) that another villain – Mole Man – will feature. Maybe Hauser or Malkovich is playing this individual, then.
Lastly, Poker Face and Russian Doll's Natasha Lyonne is involved, too. Her role hasn't been publicly disclosed either, but Marvel fans think Lyonne would be perfect for a very specific role.
And what of Doctor Doom, another of the team's legendary villains and one of Marvel's most iconic villains? With none other than Robert Downey Jr – yes, he of Iron Man and Avengers fame – playing Doom, who is now the Multiverse Saga's new main villain, he should cameo, right?
Speaking to Empire magazine (as reported by comicbookmovie.com), First Steps director Matt Shakman denied Downey Jr will appear, saying Doom isn't "part of my purview". I wouldn't be surprised if Doom appears in one of the film's end credits scenes, though, especially if Avengers: Doomsday directors Joe and Anthony Russo shot such a scene. After all, they filmed Thunderbolts' post-credits scene, which ties into First Steps' plot. Speaking of which...
The Fantastic Four: First Steps story synopsis and speculation
Here's The Fantastic Four: First Steps' official story brief: "Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family... 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 and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer. And, if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal."
The first thing to note about this Marvel Phase 6 project is it isn't an origins story. Other Fantastic Four films have already covered their space radiation-based superpowered beginnings in a live-action capacity, so don't expect this movie to re-tread old ground. As Shakman told Entertainment Weekly (EW): "There's a lot of well-known narrative that leads into that moment, right? And then you're making up your new story starting basically at the end of the first act, and we thought 'Well, let's just start this thing off on a completely new foot. So we are beginning after that.'"
If you're concerned about watching it with little to no knowledge of the titular team, don't fret. Marvel is due to release a First Steps prequel comic book that'll explain how the quartet acquire their superhuman abilities, the universe they inhabit, and more. So, be sure to pick up a copy if you need to.
