Ahead of The Fantastic Four: First Steps July premiere, Marvel Studios revealed spoilery new footage from the film. But what's particularly striking is the parallel between director Matt Shakman's first MCU movie and WandaVision on Disney+.
At CCXP in Mexico, Marvel Studios unveiled a new clip from The Fantastic Four: First Steps. According to attendees, the footage showed the team aboard their ship, with Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) in labor and the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner) in pursuit and seemingly trying to get the baby.
Fans of Marvel Comics know that Sue Storm and Reed Richards' firstborn child, Franklin Richards, will be a powerful mutant with the ability to shape reality (check out a first look at Fantastic Four's baby Franklin Richards here!) However, Sue Storm's situation resembles another MCU mom who endured intense labor and gave birth to a superhero child.
During Episode 3 of 2021's WandaVision, which Matt Shakman also directed, Wanda/Scarlet Witch gives birth to Tommy and Billy (Wiccan and Speed) after trying to hide her pregnancy from Geraldine/Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Paris).
All the while, her 1970s simulation is continually misfiring and wreaking havoc. However, in retrospect, audiences now know Wanda was intensely grieving the loss of Vision and wasn't fully aware of her own actions.
Furthermore, while Wanda wasn't in danger of losing her sons during Episode 3, it's a horror that will face by the series end.
Why WandaVision's Fantastic Four Parallel Is a Good Sign
Due to Matt Shakman's success directing the period-inspired WandaVision, Marvel's decision to bring him on to direct the 1960s, retro-futuristic Fantastic Four: First Steps seemed like a logical choice. However, since Sue Storm's pregnancy in First Steps was confirmed, perhaps Marvel Studios selected Shakman due to the film's expanded family storyline as well.
The question heading into The Fantastic Four is whether Sue Storm and Franklin Richards will share any other similarities to Wanda and her boys. At the moment, fans don't know how pregnancy will fully affect Sue before she gives birth, when Franklin Richards' powers will manifest, or even his age by the film's conclusion.
But given the praise WandaVision earned for its (albeit accelerated) family narrative, Matt Shakman's at the helm of The Fantastic Four: First Steps is an exciting and encouraging sign for how well Marvel's First Family will also portray that dynamic.
Discover yet another way The Fantastic Four: First Steps referenced WandaVision here!
The Fantastic Four: First Steps arrives in theaters on July 25.
