A third deleted scene from The Fantastic Four: First Steps has been released, titled "Birthday Sweater." In that, The Thing and H.E.R.B.I.E. make some last-minute checks on the Excelsior spacecraft before Sue Storm shows up to touch base with Ben.
He's rocking a "snazzy" birthday sweater, but seems a tad forlorn. Why? We'd bet it has something to do with what happened to him the last time the team flew a rocket into outer space.
The deleted scene features unfinished VFX for the Ever-Lovin' Blue-Eyed superhero, offering an interesting glimpse into how The Thing was brought to life in the MCU.
This is the third deleted scene to be released from The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The first featured a meeting between Sue and Mole Man in Subterranea, while the second showed her and Reed Richards caring for baby Franklin.
That and this latest scene don't add a whole lot to the Marvel Studios reboot, but it's a real shame that Harvey Elder (and his dynamic with the Invisible Woman) didn't get a little more screentime in the movie.
The Fantastic Four will return in Avengers: Doomsday next December, but will The Thing ditch his sweaters to show off his rocky pecs? As he was likely covered up to save on VFX costs, here's hoping that the movie's colossal budget opens the door to his classic look on screen.
Check out this new deleted scene from The Fantastic Four: First Steps in the player below.
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.
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.
The movie is still playing in theaters, but comes to Digital and Blu-ray in the coming weeks; you can learn more about that by clicking here.