Avengers Doomsday: The Fantastic Four’s Meeting With Wakanda Is More Important Than You Realize

Avengers: Doomsday set up what could be a huge meeting between the Fantastic Four and Wakandans, breaking new ground for the MCU. Many major groups of heroes will take center stage in Doomsday, bringing together characters who have never appeared together in a live-action movie before. 

Marvel Studios officially released the fourth new trailer for Avengers: Doomsday after it played in theaters ahead of Avatar: Fire and Ash. Following trailers focused on Steve Rogers, Thor, and three legacy X-Men heroes, this new look at the fifth Avengers movie depicted a meeting between the leaders of Wakanda and the Fantastic Four.

The trailer starts off by panning down to Letitia Wright's Shuri, who reflects on having "lost everyone that matters to [her]." As she states that a "king has his duties to prepare our people for the afterlife," fans see new looks at Mabel Cadena's Namora and Tenoch Huerta's Namor the Sub-Mariner alongside an army of Talokan soldiers.

Viewers then see Shuri walking alongside Winston Duke's M'Baku and the Dora Milaje in the middle of the desert. As Duke's hero introduces himself to a mysterious visitor as "King M'Baku of Wakanda," the shot then moves to Ebon Moss-Bachrach's Ben Grimm, who shakes M'Baku's hand and replies, "Ben...uh, Yancy Street, between Broome and Grant."

This is the first time the Fantastic Four have appeared alongside the Avengers and met other superheroes. Ahead of The Fantastic Four: First Steps' release, director Matt Shakman commented on there being "really no [other] superheroes" in the team's home universe (Earth-828). There, that quartet was it, as Shakman noted that there was no "running into Iron Man or whatever:"

"There's really no [other] superheroes. There's no Easter eggs. There's no running into Iron Man or whatever. They're it, in this universe."

Avengers: Doomsday will be the third theatrical release in Marvel Studios' Phase 6 slate and the fifth Avengers movie in the MCU overall. The cast has 29 actors confirmed to appear in a story that will feature the Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four, and more teaming up to stop Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom in his quest to annihilate the multiverse. Avengers: Doomsday will debut in theaters on December 18.

The new Doomsday trailer can be seen below:

The Fantastic Four Finally Meet Other Heroes in Avengers: Doomsday

After finally getting the full Fantastic Four team into the MCU for the first time, Doomsday will put the quartet in brand new territory, unlike anything in past Marvel movies. Now unburdened from 20th Century Fox owning their movie rights, they will have the opportunity for meaningful interactions with the Avengers and the X-Men (more than what John Krasinski delivered as Reed Richards in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness).

Considering this version of the Four were the only heroes in their universe, this movie will give them a chance to learn about how Earth-616's heroes have worked together. While this quartet is innately familiar with each other, they will learn about the dynamics between the rest of the movie's teams while also pursuing Doom and attempting to rescue the young Franklin Richards.

The most immediate question for this trailer is whether the rest of the Four are in Wakanda with Ben or are scattered across other universes. Previous reports and quotes have hinted at a confrontation between Reed Richards and Nightcrawler, which could mean the Four will be split up and trying to reunite with their resources spread thin.

While this new teaser may be the last one fans see for the foreseeable future, an upcoming full trailer for Doomsday could potentially shed more light on plot details as the film's release date approaches.