The Fantastic Four: First Steps skipped the team's origin story, meaning we only got to see their classic comic book costumes in a brief flashback to their first battle with Mole Man.
We don't know whether a longer version of that scene exists. However, Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, and Joseph Quinn have been shown wearing them in behind-the-scenes photos, suggesting they originally had a little more screentime.
The official Instagram page for The Fantastic Four: First Steps has shared a few in-universe newspaper front pages, including one with a black and white shot of Marvel's First Family in the Jack Kirby-inspired costumes. The headline reads, "Epic Showdown: Fantastic 4 Defeat Mastermind, Mad Thinker."
The Mad Thinker was referenced during the movie's opening montage, but scenes of the team saving the city were repurposed from their cut battle with John Malkovich's Red Ghost. The other two front pages focus on the Fantastic Four's transformation into superheroes and Sue Storm brokering peace with Mole Man.
"I really wanted to do the suits differently this time," The Fantastic Four: First Steps costume designer Alexandra Byrne recently told GQ. "And knitted, ribbed suits seemed a good way to go. You can’t do a whole suit that way, though. It needs to have some 'Reed' technology—otherwise it’s just a knitted onesie."
She added, "We looked at ’60s sci-fi, where suits are much cruder. We didn’t have technical fibers back then, so instead I looked at ’60s skiwear, which had lots of ribbing and stretch built-in."
Take a closer look at the Fantastic Four's comic-accurate costumes below.
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 (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) 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 (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner). And if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal.
Also appearing are Natasha Lyonne as Rachel Rozman, Paul Walter Hauser as Harvey Elder/Mole Man, Sarah Niles as Lynne Nichols, and Mark Gatiss as Ted Gilbert. John Malkovich was set to play Red Ghost, but was cut due to time constraints.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is directed by Matt Shakman from a screenplay by Josh Friedman and Eric Pearson and Jeff Kaplan & Ian Springer.
In our review of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, we concluded, "The Fantastic Four is an exceptional introduction to the MCU’s First Family, and thanks to a Jack Kirby-infused feel that’s unlike anything we’ve seen before, it proves to be a quintessential superhero movie with Marvel Studios at its brilliant best.
The movie is now playing in theaters.