By now, even the most casual Marvel Cinematic Universe fan knows that The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a period adventure, set in a retro-futuristic version of the 1960s.
In and of itself, that’s nothing special. Marvel Studios has cranked out multiple throwback movies and TV shows over the past 17 years. Captain America: The First Avenger takes place during World War II. Captain Marvel is a 1995 joint. Heck, even WandaVision (despite being set in 2023) takes advantage of Scarlet Witch’s reality-warping powers to stage its events against a TV-infused 1950s to late 2000s backdrop. Yet The Fantastic Four‘s period setting is nevertheless a big deal, because most fans initially expected the long-awaited reboot to occupy the most recent slot on the MCU’s ever-expanding timeline.
Certainly, that would track with Marvel Comics canon, which depicts the Fantastic Four as one of the premier supergroups active in the present day Marvel Universe. It also would’ve made things more accessible for less invested viewers, who’ll doubtless find First Steps‘ milieu setting puzzling. But it also would’ve been a big mistake – because of any Marvel property, Fantastic Four works best in a 1960s setting.
The Fantastic Four Is an Inherently Old School Property
Don’t get me wrong: all iconic superheroes have dated elements. Aspects of their original conception that seem irrelevant, goofy, or sometimes even downright offensive by today’s standards. There’s nothing wrong with that (except maybe some of the more overtly offensive stuff); it’s just part of life when you’re dealing with characters that have been around for over 60 years.
And plenty of these elements are easy to update. For example, it’s not a huge challenge to come up with a reason for Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm to rocket into space that doesn’t involve the Cold War and the Space Race. Similarly, you can give the quartet a branded vehicle without anyone calling it the Fantasti-Car out loud, and so on down the line. The point is, there are ways to make Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s six-plus-decade-old creation work in a present day setting for a modern audience.
But in doing so, you run the risk of losing so much of what makes Fantastic Four special to begin with. The flamboyant silliness is a feature, not a bug. Case in point: the property boasts one of the best and most influential villains of all time, however, said villain also happens to go by “Doctor Doom” (AKA the equally ridiculous Victor von Doom). He wears a suit of armor and a green hood and cape, refers to himself almost exclusively in the third person, and once engineered an elaborate time travel plot to steal magic pirate treasure. All of this is bonkers – and awesome.
Let’s also not forget that Fantastic Four is characterized as much by its old-school slice-of-life elements as its sci-fi adventuring. Reed and Sue trying to make their marriage work amid alien invasions (and with undersea hunk Prince Namor trying to woo Sue away!). Johnny and Ben playing pranks on each other and having hyper-destructive bust-ups. It’s slightly twee by today’s standards, however, it’s also the heart and soul of the FF, and why they’re so appealing to comic book readers.
Previous, Non-Period Fantastic Four Adaptations Have Struggled
Yet comic book readers only make up a relatively small portion of the movie-going public, so they’re not the folks filmmakers necessarily cater to. This undoubtedly explains why previous, non-period Fantastic Four adaptations have struggled to do their source material justice while also pitching the titular team to franchise newcomers expecting contemporary superheroes.
The two mid-2000s 20th Century Fox Fantastic Four movies went with an awkward middle-ground approach. Reed and the fam wear modernized versions of their classic bodysuits that were instantly recognizable. They use their classic crime-fighting monikers, and the melodrama and borderline vaudeville antics are present and accounted for, as well.
At the same time, neither movie really knows how to tackle its respective antagonist. Doctor Doom looks like Doctor Doom, but he doesn’t talk like him (or ever properly adopt that alias). Meanwhile, Galactus undergoes a notorious transformation from a gigantic guy in a purple helmet to a space cloud (admittedly, inspired by the much more recent Ultimate Marvel comics line). So, collectively, these flicks are paradoxically too silly and not silly enough – and they’re not satisfying as a result.
By contrast, Josh Trank’s infamous 2015 franchise do-over is more tonally assured. It’s also not very good. True, there’s something undeniably fascinating about Trank’s gritty take on Fantastic Four, particularly the body horror aspects of the team’s powers. And it’s not as if there’s anything inherently wrong with a darker take on these characters. Like all superheroes, the Fantastic Four are incredibly malleable creations that can bend in all sorts of directions – and conform to almost any prevailing cultural sensibility – without breaking.
But there’s something intangibly yet profoundly off about a po-faced, self-serious Fantastic Four film that doesn’t even reference the team’s name. Too much of the essence of the FF – the most crucial part of any adaptation – is lost when you strip away their more outlandish trappings and dial back the soap opera and buddy banter of it all.
Setting The Fantastic Four in the 1960s Is the Only Way to Bring Them Into the 2020s
Clearly, Marvel Studios gets this. Otherwise, The Fantastic Four: First Steps director Matt Shakman and his cast and crew wouldn’t be framing the FF’s third cinematic iteration in a retro-future 1960s context. Given the general aversion of audiences to full-blown period superhero films (consider: First Avenger is the lowest-grossing Captain America movie by a decent margin), the safest bet would’ve been to go the contemporary route. Or it would’ve been, if the Fantastic Four made sense in a 2020s setting. But they don’t; they’re a delightful throwback proposition that’s only free to be its best, most authentic self in a bygone era.
That doesn’t mean the FF have to stay put in the 1960s. Marvel is almost certainly planning on porting them over to the mainstream, modern day MCU before the franchise’s sixth phase of programming wraps up, as well they should. And when that finally happens, Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben will bring their period baggage with them, and because we know their retro origins, any clashes with the (slightly) more grounded heroes and villains of the MCU proper will feel intentional. Sure, it’s a roundabout way of doing things – but it’s the only way to make things work, too.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps arrives in cinemas on July 25, 2025.