Fan art promoting Marvel Studios’ upcoming The Fantastic Four reboot takes inspiration from Marvel Comics’ Fantastic Four stories from the 1960s.

The Fantastic Four in Marvel Comics with the cover of 1962's Fantastic Four #3

New MCU fan art promotes the retro, 1960s themes of Marvel Studios’ upcoming The Fantastic Four reboot. After several years of silence surrounding the MCU’s live-action reboot of Marvel’s First Family, Marvel Studios finally confirmed the main cast of The Fantastic Four on Valentine’s Day 2024, announcing Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as the leading stars of The Fantastic Four. Since then, several updates have confirmed new characters for The Fantastic Four, have hinted at the project’s 1960s setting, and have also teased major storylines that could take the Fantastic Four across the MCU’s vast multiverse.

While the initial logo of The Fantastic Four hinted at a more modern take on the legendary superhero team, more recent promotional material suggests The Fantastic Four will be set in the 1960s. This has spurred a great deal of fan art depicting the team in classic styles from Marvel Comics, including an adapted cover of 1962’s Fantastic Four #3 shared by Julienricojr.

This art depicts Pascal, Kirby, Quinn and Moss-Bachrach as their respective characters in place of the original members on the cover of Fantastic Four #3, showing off their superhuman abilities and marking an appearance by the Fantasti-Car.

Why Fantastic Four Images Have Leaned Into A ’60s Aesthetic

The Fantastic Four team celebrating in the 1960s

When Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige first announced a release date for The Fantastic Four back in 2022, the proposed logo for the project hinted at a sleeker, more modern take on Marvel’s First Family. This changed drastically with new promotional material that kicked off with the reveal of The Fantastic Four’s cast on Valentine’s Day. The poster confirming Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s casting delivered a brighter design inspired by the 1960s. Ben Grimm reads a 1963 issue of LIFE Magazine, while the Fantastic Four’s costumes and home decor are clearly reminiscent of the 1960s.

This was followed in April 2024 by a character poster focused on Joseph Quinn’s Johnny Storm, a.k.a. the Human Torch. In the poster, Johnny Storm shows off his fire-wielding abilities as he flies above a retro-futuristic city. This gives weight to The Fantastic Four’s suspected 1960s setting, though has also spurred speculation that the project could be set in an alternate reality inspired by the ’60s, rather than in the MCU’s actual history. Marvel Studios promoting The Fantastic Four’s 1960s themes could be a stroke of genius, as it likely suggests the titular team are going back to their roots.

Marvel’s First Family made their Marvel Comics debut in 1961’s Fantastic Four #1, and experienced some of their most exciting life events throughout the decade of the 1960s. The customs of the period play a huge role in the development of the Fantastic Four, particularly in their family dynamic and vibrant fashion choices, so it makes sense that Marvel Studios may be setting The Fantastic Four in a 1960s-inspired world. Previous live-action adaptations failed to modernize the team properly, but Marvel Studios seems to be avoiding this issue by placing the team back in a time period they know intimately.