Marvel has finally announced the casting for the much anticipated The Fantastic Four film that’s coming in 2025. Not only were Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn confirmed as the franchise’s Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Ben Grimm, and Johnny Storm, respectively, but we’ve also received our first look at the film via the official, Easter egg-riddled poster.
1960s setting
The most notable thing about the new, beautifully illustrated Fantastic Four poster is the 1960s aesthetic. Fans of Marvel comics were quick to make the connection between the art style and the Fantastic Four’s 1960s comics origins, even bringing up another Marvel property that had kind of already hinted at the upcoming film possibly being a period piece. Remember when Stephen Strange told John Krasinki’s Mr. Fantastic that he thought The Fantastic Four had charted in the 60s? Yep!
While this could just be a fun design for the film’s first poster, other cheeky details in the image have everyone convinced it will be set in the cultural decade. For one, the Thing, AKA Ben Grimm, is focused on reading a magazine that looks an awful lot like an issue of LIFE Magazine from 1963 featuring President Lyndon B. Johnson on the cover. On the wall, his past self poses wearing an astronaut uniform reminiscent of Neil Armstrong’s famous 1969 NASA portrait. If that wasn’t enough to drive the point home, Pedro Pascal also shared the poster on his Instagram profile accompanied by The Beatles’ 1967 single “All You Need Is Love.” Bring on the MCU’s third period movie!
H.E.R.B.I.E.
The MCU is about to get its first cute robot character to plaster all over its merchandise and finally compete with Star Wars and Wall-E in the niche but passionate market. H.E.R.B.I.E. (Highly Engineered Robot Built for Interdimensional Exploration) is a fan-favorite robot from the early Fantastic Four comics designed by Mr. Fantastic himself. He was the team’s side-kick on many occasions and would also look after Sue and Reed’s children. We know who would be the perfect man to voice this funky little guy, but no there’s no official word from Marvel’s camp just yet.
Retro character design and style
If the 1960s setting really does materialize, we could be looking at a fun opportunity for Marvel to reference the character’s classic appearance in the comics. In the poster, Reed and Ben look very comic-accurate, as the foursome’s retro uniforms have everyone raving about what could be Marvel’s most fashionable team. Director Matt Shakman, who explored a myriad of different eras in film and fashion with WandaVision with charm and flair should be the right man for the job.
Possible first look at the Baxter Building
Sue, Johnny, Reed, Ben, and H.E.R.B.I.E. sure look cozy hanging around their living room, celebrating Valentine’s Day, reading the latest news, and sipping coffee. The Fantastic Four’s home, of course, is the iconic Baxter Building, a 35-story New York skyscraper, of which Marvel’s First Family occupies the top five floors. Imagine how much fun production and set designers could have with ’60s interior decor.
Ben’s NASA background
Before radiation turned him into a big rocky monster, Ben Grim was an astronaut and a test pilot for the United States Air Force. The poster uses the character’s origin story as a pretext to include Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s Emmy-winning face in the announcement in the form of a framed portrait on the wall, but could it be a hint at something more? In the comics, Ben’s connections to NASA differ from series to series, but given the image’s very familiar composition, could he be a part of the top government agency that defined the 1960s?
Sue Storm and Reed Richards could already be an item
This Valentine’s Day announcement was overflowing with love, particularly between one of Marvel’s most iconic romances, Sue Storm and Reed Richards. From the looks of it, the new Fantastic Four will follow the 2005 iteration’s lead and introduce the duo as an already-established relationship. We’re hoping we can at least get a glimpse of their wedding ceremony, though! What a gorgeous-looking couple Pedro Pascal and Vanessa Kirby make.
The film has snatched fellow 2025 Marvel project Thunderbolts‘ release date, stretching, clobbering, sneaking, and flaming into theaters on July 25 instead of the previously announced (and many times changed) May 2 slot.
