Earlier this week, it was announced that The Fantastic Four: First Steps is officially set for release in China on July 25, day and date with the U.S.
While this is good news for the Marvel Studios reboot, the Middle Kingdom is no longer as beneficial to Hollywood blockbusters as it was pre-pandemic (when it was quickly becoming as big a market, if not bigger, than North America).
Today, five new character posters have been revealed. Those highlight Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, the Human Torch, The Thing, and a robot with the potential to shift Grogu-levels of merchandise for Disney, H.E.R.B.I.E.
"Casting was the number one challenge for the film," filmmaker Matt Shakman said earlier this year. "It wasn't just a search for who was the best Ben and who was the best Johnny, but also who was the best family? Who was the best married couple? Who were the best siblings and honorary uncle? So it's been very gratifying to see the incredible chemistry that the four of them have had since the beginning."
In the same interview, Shakman explained why he wanted to focus on Galactus and the Silver Surfer instead of Doctor Doom, a villain who was front and centre in the 2005, 2007, and 2015 movies.
"Doom's a great character, but he takes up a lot of air," the director explained. "Other film adaptations have done both an origin story and Doom. We're doing neither, and that allows us to look at them from a fresh perspective."
Check out these new character posters for The Fantastic Four: First Steps below (along with more that have surfaced since we first published this article).
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 mystery 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.