Marvel Studios has assembled an undeniably impressive cast for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, with Paul Walter Hauser (Cruella) among those set to take on mystery roles in the MCU reboot.
The prevailing theory is that he's playing the villainous Mole Man. While Hauser wouldn't be drawn on sharing details about his character, he made it clear that the enormity of this franchise, and the Fantastic Four, in particular, is not lost on him.
"I kind of look at it like you have to earn that by being really good, too. Because anybody will do a Marvel thing now," he explained. "Like, Denzel [Washington] might be in 'Black Panther 3.' There’s been rumors about that, him and Coogler wanting to do that. And it’s like, well, if they can get Denzel, they don’t need you."
"You got invited to the party," Hauser continued. "Show up, be professional, try to kill it."
Acknowledging Marvel Studios' struggles during the Multiverse Saga, the actor shared his belief that the studio is now in a "cool rebuilding phase."
He added, "I don’t think I’m speaking out of school. And I think, from what I’ve seen, and obviously I can’t say much about it, but I will say the short time I was on set, dude, they’re making a cool movie, man. This is a smart, chic Marvel movie that really focuses on family as part of the theme. And you really kind of fall in love with those characters, I think."
"And that’s what’s missing is sometimes if you don’t fall in love with these characters, and you keep putting them in peril, we don’t really care," he said of what's hurt recent MCU titles. "You know, you got to make us care first. And I think Marvel’s hopefully getting back to some of that.
There's yet to be a good Fantastic Four movie, never mind a great one. However, First Steps looks set to be the movie that turns things around for Marvel's First Family, largely due to a completely different approach to the team in a futuristic 1960s-inspired setting.
While there are still plenty of questions surrounding their alternate reality status, all signs also point to the Fantastic Four being a huge part of the MCU moving forward, starting with Avengers: Doomsday.
You can hear more from Hauser on The Fantastic Four: First Steps in the player 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.
Paul Walter Hauser, John Malkovich, and Natasha Lyonne have been cast in mystery roles.
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.