Marvel Studios has started screening The Fantastic Four: First Steps for select members of the press, so it was inevitable that someone would eventually leak the reboot's post-credits scenes.
While we'd advise turning away now if you don't want to be spoiled, this isn't a particularly detailed description, and we'll be sharing an in-depth breakdown with you a little later this week. For those of you who kept up with test screening leaks, what you're about to read is also unlikely to come as much of a surprise.
According to scooper @MyTimeToShineH, "[The Fantastic Four: First Steps] has two post-credits scenes, one is Doom showing up in Sue's place looking at Franklin (we don't see RDJ), the second one is a short animated skit with the four fighting villains."
This lines up with what we've been hearing for months about a surprise cameo from Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom, which presumably sets the stage for him to kidnap Franklin Richards. In the comics, the son of Reed and Sue is an immensely powerful mutant with the ability to reshape and create realities, so you likely don't need us to tell you how that could be key heading into Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps director Matt Shakman recently confirmed that the Russo Brothers directed one of the movie's stingers, and we're gonna go ahead and assume that it wasn't the cartoon!
The Doom-centric post-credits scene promises to be an absolute must-see, as it will give fans a first look at Downey's Doctor Doom costume. Will it be comic-accurate, or might the Russos have something else in store for this mysterious Variant of Victor? That remains to be seen, as does whether this Doom hails from Earth-828.
Alas, it seems we'll have to wait until Avengers: Doomsday to hear Downey's Doom voice and, hopefully, see his face (if indeed his scarred visage will be revealed).
Stay tuned for more on The Fantastic Four: First Steps later this week.
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.
Paul Walter Hauser, John Malkovich, Natasha Lyonne, and Sarah Niles have been cast in supporting roles. Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom is rumoured to appear, though that's surely a given with Avengers: Doomsday on the way.
Director Matt Shakman worked with both Avatar: The Way of Water co-writer Josh Friedman and WandaVision's Cam Squires on The Fantastic Four: First Steps' screenplay, with Eric Pearson (Black Widow) later coming on board for a final polish.
The movie is set to be released in theaters on July 25, 2025.