The MCU is bringing a new version of the Fantastic Four as part of its Multiverse Saga, and here’s what you need to know about this reboot.

A Fantastic Four movie is finally being made part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the Multiverse Saga, and here’s everything there is to know about this reboot. The more the MCU expands, the more opportunities emerge to bring more Marvel Comics characters to life, as well as to give a new chance to characters whose previous adaptations weren’t exactly a success. The Disney/Fox merge now gives Marvel the chance to use popular characters from Fox’s Marvel movies to make them part of the MCU timeline, and among them are the Fantastic Four.

The Fantastic Four got their first film adaptation in 1994, in a project that has become infamous as it was never released, and their proper big-screen debut didn’t happen until 2005. The team got the reboot treatment in 2015 in a movie simply titled Fantastic Four and directed by Josh Trank. Unfortunately, Fantastic Four was a massive critical and commercial failure, but the team is getting one more chance, now as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 6 slate, and here’s what’s known so far about the MCU Fantastic Four reboot.

Marvel’s Fantastic Four Latest News

The latest update for the MCU Fantastic Four movie involves the reveal that Julia Garner will be playing Shalla-Bal, a version of the Silver Surfer, in the film’s cast. Reports have also arisen that Galactus is set to be in the movie as its main villain, but this is currently not officially confirmed.

Other than this, the most recent news regarding the MCU’s Fantastic Four movie is the official casting for the main team of the film, with Marvel revealing in February 2024 via social media post that “Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn are The Fantastic Four.” Deadline also reported in February 2024 that the Fantastic Four movie will release July 25 2025, swapping release dates with Thunderbolts, which is now set to release May 2 2025.

Key Revelations From The Fantastic Four Cast Announcement

The Fantastic Four will be set in the 1960s.

Sidekick robot H.E.R.B.I.E. will appear.
The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) will have a very comics accurate appearance.

Marvel’s Fantastic Four Release Date

The Fantastic Four movie is set to release July 25 2025, putting it relatively squarely in the middle of the Multiverse Saga. This comes 6 years after initial announcements for the MCU film, as the Fantastic Four were confirmed to arrive at the MCU in 2019, during Marvel’s panel at San Diego Comic-Con. In December 2020, Jon Watts was announced as director, though in April 2022, he stepped down to take a break from directing superhero films after helming the MCU’s Spider-Man trilogy.

During the 2022 D23 event, Matt Shakman was confirmed as the new director of Fantastic Four, and at the time of writing, the project is scheduled for a May 2, 2025 release, meaning the Fantastic Four will join the MCU during the final chapter of the Multiverse Saga.

Why The Fantastic Four Debut In Marvel’s Phase 6

Most of the MCU’s Phase 5 and what has been revealed of Phase 6 so far have gone through various changes due to production delays, narrative restructures, and the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. What hasn’t changed, however, is Fantastic Four kicking off the MCU’s Phase 6, which might seem like a late introduction for such a big and popular team, but it makes sense within the MCU’s narrative.

Fantastic Four will skip the team’s origin story and will introduce them as an active team, and they are believed to be set up as a big multiverse presence for either Avengers: The Kang Dynasty or Avengers: Secret Wars, so it makes sense that their movie is the one that marks the beginning of the end of the Multiverse Saga.

Marvel’s Fantastic Four Cast

On February 14, 2024, Marvel confirmed its main Fantastic Four movie cast on X, showing a post with the caption “Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn are The Fantastic Four.” The image shared alongside it confirms Pascal will be Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby will play Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn will play Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach will play Ben Grimm. These casting confirmations are sure to delight audiences, as each of these actors have been popular fancasts for the roles.

March 3, 2024, also saw the reveal that the Silver Surfer would be Shalla-Bal in the MCU, seemingly instead of Norrin Radd, who is traditionally the main Silver Surfer in the comics. This came alongside the news that Julia Garner will be playing Shalla-Bal – a decision that seems well made given her performances in series like Ozark. Notably, this will not be the first time Garner has appeared in a comic book movie, as she also featured in Sin City: A Dame To Kill For as Marcie.

Fantastic Four’s MCU First Family Explained

Actor
Character
Superhero Name

Pedro Pascal
Reed Richards
Mr Fantastic

Vanessa Kirby
Sue Storm
Invisible Woman

Joseph Quinn
Johnny Storm
The Human Torch

Ebon Moss-Bachrach
Ben Grimm
The Thing

The voice actor behind robot companion H.E.R.B.I.E. is so far unannounced, and the anticipated inclusion of Doctor Doom as the movie’s villain (or the universe-eater Galactus as a hotly rumored alternative), have so far not been announced.

The MCU casting confirmation also comes after a period of rumors about the Fantastic Four cast, which did include all four of the final candidate – alongside many others.

Marvel’s Fantastic Four Story Predictions

So far, the only firmly established detail about The Fantastic Four‘s plot is the setting: the Life magazine issue The Thing is reading is from 1963, establishing a period piece. That also explains where Marvel’s First Family have been for the rest of the MCU, though the positioning of The Fantastic Four leading into the next Avengers event suggests that they may be brought to the present by a multiverse plot. Either way, a 1960s retro-futuristic vibe will be very cool.

Marvel is well-known for keeping details about its movies a secret until the very last minute, and in the case of its Fantastic Four reboot, it seems to be especially careful with casting and plot details. As mentioned above, it has been confirmed by Kevin Feige himself that the MCU’s Fantastic Four won’t be an origin story, but that’s all that’s known about the plot so far. Fantastic Four’s villain hasn’t been revealed either, so predicting the film’s story is a lot trickier than it seems. However, Fantastic Four is believed to be key in setting up the Multiverse Saga’s crossover events The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars, so the movie could involve a Kang variant, with some theories pointing at Rama-Tut being the villain to defeat.

Of course, many rumors and theories point at Fantastic Four introducing the MCU’s version of Doctor Doom, more so as this villain has a key role in the Secret Wars comic book storyline. Plot details about Fantastic Four surely won’t be revealed until the movie’s release date is close, and even then, many details will remain a secret as there surely will be some twists and turns that are best kept under wraps until the movie is released.