Summary
Marvel’sThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsis repeating the best trick the MCU employed with theSpider-Manmovies. As is usually the case, July 2024 saw Marvel unleash manymovie and TV reveals at San Diego Comic-Con. The primary focus of Marvel Studios' Hall H panel fell upon theupcoming list of Marvel moviesset for 2025 release dates, includingCaptain America: Brave New World,Thunderbolts*, andThe Fantastic Four: First Steps.
While there were other major reveals such asAvengers: Doomsday’s refocused storyand the return of the Russo Brothers alongside Robert Downey Jr. to the MCU, a lot of hype was directed towardsThe Fantastic Four. The promotion for the movie saw theMCU’sFantastic Fourcastassembled for the first time as they, joined by director Matt Shakman, outlined what fans can expect from the highly anticipated movie. One of the biggest reveals about Marvel’sThe Fantastic Fourfilm has actually been seen in the MCU before, as the film repeated a neat trick utilized by the MCU’sSpider-Manfranchise.
Fantastic Four: First Steps - Release Date, Trailer, Cast, Story, & Everything We Know
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.
The Fantastic Four’s New Title Repeats The MCU’s Spider-Man: Homecoming Trick
The Fantastic Four & Spider-Man Have One Thing In Common
The biggest update surrounding the 2025 film at SDCC 2024 was the reveal that it has anew title -The Fantastic Four: First Steps.This has naturally caused a lot of theories about what the new title could mean for the film’s story, yet it also works from a deeper marketing perspective. As alluded to, this is a trick that the MCU has employed before throughSpider-Man: Homecoming.
When Spider-Man was introduced to the MCU, it became evident that the franchise would need to differentiate Tom Holland’s version from the two previous iterations. Prior to the MCU trilogy, there had been Sam Raimi’sSpider-Mantrilogy and twoThe Amazing Spider-Manfilms, with the last installment of the latter only coming two years before Holland’s MCU debut. As a result, Marvel Studios titled the first soloSpider-ManMCU filmSpider-Man:Homecoming. This symbolized that Spider-Man was, aptly, coming home to the MCU after being part of Sony’s franchises.
As evident by the immense popularity of theMCUSpider-Mantrilogy, this title trick worked. It was a subtle way of differentiating the movie from past iterations all while making sense within the film’s story. WithThe Fantastic Four: First Steps, Marvel is repeating this trick. Like Spider-Man,The Fantastic Four is a property that has had two different mainstream film iterations, the 2005-2007Fantastic Fourseries and 2015’sFANT4STIC.LikeHomecoming,First Stepsallows Marvel Studios to separate its version ofThe Fantastic Fourfrom past franchises, all while symbolizing the family’s first steps into the MCU.
Another 2025 Marvel Project Is Copying Spider-Man & The Fantastic Four
One Of Marvel’s Upcoming TV Shows Is Repeating The Foolproof Trick
Interestingly, this title trick does not stop withSpider-Man: HomecomingandThe Fantastic Four: First Steps. When looking at theupcoming Marvel TV shows, it becomes apparent that another franchise is employing this title trend. The franchise in question isDaredevil, with Marvel Television releasingDaredevil: Born Againat some point in 2025. LikeSpider-ManandThe Fantastic Four: First Steps,Daredevilhas had two mainstream live-action iterations.
The first came with Ben Affleck’sDaredevilin 2003, and the second was the Netflix Marvel series that ran between 2015 and 2018. WhileDaredevil: Born Againis essentially a sequel to the latter, it is still its own entity in the eyes of Marvel Studios. As such, rather than continue with the title of Netflix’s show, the MCU is calling the showDaredevil: Born Again. This insinuates that the titular character is being reborn in the MCU while emulatingHomecomingand making sense within the story, given thatBorn Againis the name of a famous Daredevil comic book run by Frank Miller.
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What Else The Fantastic Four’s First Steps Subtitle Could Mean
The Fantastic Four’s New Title Could Confirm A Long-Running MCU Theory
As far asDaredevil: Born AgainandSpider-Man: Homecomingare concerned, it is clear how their subtitles impact the story.Spider-Man: Homecoming’s final act was centered entirely around Peter Parker’s Homecoming dance at school, giving the title story context as well as the aforementioned marketing advantage. ForDaredevil: Born Again, the link to the Miller Marvel Comics series of the same name gives it the necessary story meaning. RegardingThe Fantastic Four: First Steps, however, it will be unclear how the title impacts the story until the film is released in July 2025.
Regardless, some theories have been floated about whatFirst Stepscould mean. The most prominent theory concerns Reed Richards and Sue Storm, specifically that their children from the comics, Valeria and Franklin Richards, will be part of the MCU movie. This would make sense with the title ofFirst Steps, as the term is often used when babies walk for the first time.
The Fantastic Four’s New Title Supports Major MCU Reed Richards & Sue Storm Theory
Marvel Studios has added a subtitle to its upcoming Fantastic Four reboot movie, which could tease the debut of two new young heroes.
Why Marvel’s Title Trick Continuously Works
Franchise Differentiation, Story Context, & Lack Of Origin Stories Help Marvel’s Title Tricks Work
With so many MCU franchises following this title trick, it is worth exploring why it continues to work. Some of the reasons behind this have already been alluded to, including the differentiation of different franchises.Spider-Man: Homecomingimmediately made it clear that the franchise was different from the prior two, which were somewhat confusing in thatThe Amazing Spider-Mandid not change much from Raimi’s originalSpider-Man. The same can be said for the priorFantastic Fourfranchises, which were both slightly altered versions of the same title. In the MCU’s case,theFirst Stepssubtitle immediately separates it from what came before.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps will not include the team’s origin, just asSpider-Man: Homecomingdid not for Peter Parker…
Finally, the subtitles mentioned make it clear that the new versions of the franchises will not be origin stories.The Fantastic Four: First Stepswill not include the team’s origin, just asSpider-Man: Homecomingdid not for Peter Parker. Similarly,Daredevil: Born Againwill follow Netflix’sDaredevilwithout rehashing the latter’s origin story. The new subtitles make this clear, which also helps the projects stand apart. A lack of origin stories in each one makes them feel unique from what has come before, asThe Fantastic Four: First Stepswill hopefully continue.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Cast
The Fantastic 4: First Steps features Marvel’s First Family navigating their dual roles as superheroes and family members in a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world. They defend Earth from a formidable space god, Galactus, and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer, testing their familial bonds and heroic resolve.
