Yahoo Movies Where does The Fantastic Four: First Steps fit in the Marvel timeline?
Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach join the MCU as Marvel's First Family, which launches Phase 6 of the superhero franchise.
The Fantastic Four are entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) for their first steps, a long-awaited return for the characters to the franchise after the rights to the characters returned to the studio.
Marvel's first family Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) make their MCU debut in First Steps, which introduces the world to the quartet and how they came to have their powers. Reed's stretchiness makes him Mr Fantastic, while Sue's invisibility leads to her alter-ego the Invisible Woman, Johnny becomes the Human Torch because of his fire powers, while Ben becomes known as The Thing for his rock-like exterior.
As well as establishing the origin stories of their superheroic abilities the film will see the group have to protect their home from the cosmic being Galactus and his herald the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner). But where exactly is Fantastic Four in the MCU timeline and when is it set? Here's what you need to know.
When does Fantastic Four: First Steps take place?
Fantastic Four: First Steps takes place in a retro-futuristic version of Earth, and while it has futuristic undertones it has a 1960s feel precisely because it is set in that time period. The Sixties was the era of the Space Race, of The Beatles and the early days of television, and there are several references made to this in the film's official trailer including the family actually launching into space.
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But while these 1960s markers serve as an inspiration for the film, they should be seen more as a jumping off point. That is because Fantastic Four: First Steps takes place in an alternate universe, and so their Earth is familiar but not quite the same — It is the 1960s but not as we know it.
Speaking in The Official Marvel Podcast, Marvel boss Kevin Feige said the film is "very much" a period drama but added: "There were a lot of smart people, who noticed that that cityscape [in a poster for the movie] didn't look exactly like the New York that we know, or that existed in the '60s in our world... those are smart observations, I'll say."
Director Matt Shakman also confirmed the setting at San Diego Comic Con in 2024, saying: "We’re doing a retro-future ’60s. Syd Mead was an inspiration. The ’60s, to me, is all about optimism. I love the Fantastic Four. I love their power set. We want to be true to the comics but we want to be true to life."
Where does Fantastic Four: First Steps fit in the MCU?
The question that then remains is where does the new Fantastic Four movie fit in Marvel's timeline? Well as it is set in an alternate Earth that means that it is its own thing and doesn't technically fit anywhere in the story we've seen thus far, which is known as the Sacred Timeline.
Marvel has opened up its franchise to all kinds of possibilities by introducing the multiverse, which allows alternate universes to meet and co-exist as seen in Spider-Man: Far From Home, Deadpool & Wolverine, Loki, and more. What we can assume from what we've seen so far is that the new Fantastic Four movie is not part of the Sacred Timeline.
Galactus is the main enemy of the Fantastic Four in this film, but the cosmic being was teased before in the movie Eternals. The film introduced the concept of Celestials who destroy the planets they were planted in, and Galactus is much the same — the being drains the life force of planets and sets his sights on Earth which is when the quartet set out to stop him.
Fantastic Four: First Steps is part of Marvel's Phase 6, but if we were to go by year alone and disregard the concept of the Sacred Timeline then the movie would technically sit between Captain America: The First Avenger, Agent Carter and Captain Marvel. The first two are set between 1943 and 1946 while the latter takes place in 1995.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps premieres in cinemas on 25 July, 2025.
