Ready for liftoff, Marvel fans? Marvel Studios released The Fantastic Four: First Steps teaser trailer on Tuesday, Feb. 4 (The F4 branding is strong!), offering a first look at the anticipated summer blockbuster.
On Monday, Marvel teased the trailer’s debut by promoting “launch coverage” that began at 7 a.m. ET. Upon the start of the live stream, fans were then met with a one-hour countdown as though there was a legitimate space shuttle launch. Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach then joined the live event at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, to launch the trailer themselves.
In addition to The Fantastic Four: First Steps teaser trailer, Marvel also shared a set of four teaser posters and the first synopsis for the film:
“Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel Studios’ ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ introduces Marvel’s First Family—Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm/Human Torch and Ben Grimm/The Thing as they face their most daunting challenge yet.”
The Fantastic Four’s Retro Return to the Big Screen
This isn’t the Fantastic Four we’ve seen on the big screen before. A departure from the previous non-MCU films set in the 21st-century setting, The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer shows the retro universe of the movie, which is in a timeline outside of the Sacred Timeline (as established in Loki). Despite the old-fashioned aesthetic, the trailer feels fresh and fun. It feels like something we’ve yet to see in the MCU but still true to the aforementioned “1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world.”
One of the most notable retro elements from The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer is the Fantastic Four’s costuming. Featuring the standout white boots and belt with the 4 logo prominently included on the chest, their suits look like they are straight out of the comics. The Thing’s design, too, resembles the character’s design from older comic books as opposed to a more modernized look.
Even the composition of The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer plays into the 1960s setting. The video begins with a 4:3 aspect ratio, as was used during that time, before transitioning into the 19:6 format commonly used today. It’s a clever way to further establish the different time period, but it’s also not the first time the MCU has used that storytelling device. WandaVision, also directed by The Fantastic Four: First Steps director Matt Shakman, did the same thing during the show.
Not an Origin Story
While this isn’t the first Fantastic Four movie to be made, this teaser trailer suggests this iteration won’t be an origin story. That’s not to say it won’t address how the astronauts get abilities. But The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer features the group as an established entity of heroes. It’s not about how they become superpowered beings, how they adjust to the change, and how they become heroes. It’s about them actually being heroes — who they are and what they do.
In The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer, the primary dialogue features Reed talking to Sue about how things have changed since their last trip to space — the team’s lives before becoming elastic, invisible, on fire at will, and a rock in human form. Sue goes on to assure him that, despite the differences, they will face whatever life throws at them together — “as a family.”
That idea of family is the ultimate theme of the preview. It lives up to being a teaser trailer by not giving much away but rather offering various random snippets of what’s to come.
Familiar Figures in The Fantastic Four: First Steps Trailer
No sign of Robert Downey Jr.’s Dr. Doom here. But there are still plenty of familiar sights to be excited about!
Featured for the first time in film, H.E.R.B.I.E. the robot makes an early appearance in The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer. The robot is cooking a meal that Ben/The Thing offers his input on. In the comics, the robot’s name stands for “Humanoid Experimental Robot B-Type Integrated Electronics.” No word on whether the acronym will have the same meaning, though. The MCU has been known to tweak the full names of acronyms used in the comics (e.g. S.H.I.E.L.D. and S.W.O.R.D.). Nevertheless, H.E.R.B.I.E.’s design perfectly suits the retro-futuristic vibe of the movie, and we can’t wait to see how he’s utilized in the movie.
The character comic books fans are arguably most excited for is Galactus. Unlike H.E.R.B.I.E., Galactus has already made his film debut — though he looked very different. The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer offers a partial glimpse at the planet-consuming villain and its looming shadow. In contrast, Galactus’s previous appearance in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer featured it as an enormous comic-inaccurate space cloud.
The brief feature of the Fantasticar was another exciting treat for comic fans. A different version of the vehicle was seen in Deadpool & Wolverine when the titular characters are in the Void. The one in The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer more closely resembles a traditional vehicle roaming the streets of Manhattan.
Fanfare for Marvel’s First Family
Keeping up with the theme of quartets, Marvel also released teaser posters in conjunction with The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer. None of them highlight the heroes as the main subject but rather the civilians of that world. From adults waving flags and posters to kids excitedly watching the heroes on TV, the Fantastic Four is positively regarded by the public. They are celebrated and inspiring. They are seen as symbols of hope.
By framing the posters that way, Marvel establishes the uplifting reality of this world and contrasts it with the harsher, post-Blip, no-Avenger reality of the main timeline.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is in theaters on July 25.
