When Galactus, Devourer of Worlds, arrives for his next meal in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, his dinner reservation will be confirmed by his herald, the Silver Surfer. Subbing in for Norrin Radd, the Zenn-La native who almost always holds the job, is Radd's main squeeze, Shalla-Bal (Julia Garner). In the upcoming MCU movie, Bal is presumed to be recruited by Galactus instead of Norrin Radd, but details are currently scarce. Naturally, Shalla-Bal will serve as an ominous hype woman for Galactus. In short: When Big G gets hangry, Shalla is sent to Earth to notify its inhabitants that her boss is on his way, which puts her in the crossfire with the Fantastic Four (FF).
Like virtually any tentpole blockbuster, The Fantastic Four: First Steps' marketing push includes many tie-in merchandise. Hasbro has already offered a glimpse at the Marvel Legends figures of the MCU's First Family. Now, Funko claimed its piece with the rollout of several new Funko Pop! figurines based on First Steps. Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny are all present and accounted for in Funko's lineup. Also among their ranks is Shalla-Bal's Silver Surfer (via Funko.com). In fact, Funko's new offering is the first piece of MCU Silver Surfer merch.
Depicted catching some gnarly intergalactic waves atop her gravity-defying board, the Silver Surfer is sculpted in Funko's famous "super-deformed" in-house style, with minimal facial features and a head ten times the size of her body. Still, the Funko Shalla-Bal gets the message across clearly; any Marvel fan who sees the item will almost instantly know that it's supposed to be the Surfer.
The product's packaging features the Funko logo and the 1960s-influenced title treatment for The Fantastic Four: First Steps. At the bottom of the box is the name "Silver Surfer." It could be seen as curious that Funko did not specify the character as Shalla-Bal. However, as far as audiences are aware, Bal is the only incarnation of the Silver Surfer that Marvel Studios intends to use right now, deeming any extra signifiers unnecessary.
Judging by trailer footage that features the character, the Silver Surfer Funko Pop!'s design hews closely to her on-screen counterpart, albeit with the toymaker's signature creative liberties applied. Although there are surely more Shalla-Bal-themed products bound for the toy aisles, Funko's is the first out of the gate, which gives it a special distinction.
In First Steps, Reed Richards blames himself for putting Earth on Galactus' radar. The famously elasticized hero stretched himself and his scientific endeavors into areas of space he should not have been poking around in. This is why the purple planet-eater rocks up to his homeworld and endangers everyone living on it. Fortunately, while Galactus is mighty, so are the Fantastic Four. The team is expected to fight back against the deadly force of nature (played by Ralph Ineson), but they will likely need to initially contend with the Surfer, who is no slouch in the superpower department herself.
The new Silver Surfer Pop! might be Funko's first foray into immortalizing the MCU's take on the character, but that doesn't mean it's the company's only stab at it. In 2024, Funko released a Pop! Vinyl version of Shalla-Bal's Zenn-Lavian loverboy Norrin Radd. The figurine was based on the Surfer's comic book appearances and hit similar beats to its MCU-affiliated analogue, with a dynamic pose and the inclusion of the trademark surfboard.
The original Funko Pop Silver Surfer hit retailers in June last year and has since seen its first-party availability dry up. If fans wish to add this item to their collections, they must resort to the aftermarket and pay more than Funko's usual asking price.
Marvel Studios' The Fantastic Four: First Steps lands in theaters on July 25 with a cast chock-full of big names. Pedro Pascal plays Reed Richards, aka Mister Fantastic, while Vanessa Kirby will fill the role of his wife and team powerhouse, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman. Rounding out the quartet is up-and-comer Joseph Quinn, who will flame on as Johnny Storm/The Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who will become the Ever-Lovin' Blue-Eyed Thing through motion capture technology.
Will Galactus & the Silver Surfer Defeat the Fantastic Four?
Ever since it became indicated that The Fantastic Four: First Steps would not take place in the MCU proper but on another world within the Multiverse, audiences have not taken a moment's rest from theorizing. What Earth is the film set on? Have the FF always lived there? And perhaps most pressingly, can the Fantastic Four save their home from cosmic obliteration?
Traditionally, Galactus has one function: To consume. He travels from planet to planet, feasting on life force and leaving barren chunks of space rock in his wake. Galactus can't truly be destroyed. In most cases, he can only be contained or distracted. Over the years, the FF have found creative methods of contending with Galactus, but that was in the comics. The MCU is in a more complex position of telling an accessible story and raising the stakes for the Four as they head into 2026's Avengers: Doomsday.
In the post-credits scene of Thunderbolts*, the New Avengers are alerted to a spacecraft emerging from a tear in space-time. A vessel emblazoned with the number 4 flashes on the screen. Moreover, the ship doesn't exactly look to be on a pleasure cruise. The sequence suggests that the Fantastic Four are in trouble and perhaps have just escaped from an attack on their universe of origin. Conventional logic implies that the team fled from Galactus after discovering they couldn't stop him.
It could be that The Fantastic Four: First Steps concludes with the First Family making the life-or-death choice to stay in the fight with Galactus or find a way to escape. This could be what brings them into the Sacred Timeline. Occasionally, in other media, the FF will appeal to the Silver Surfer's decency and enlist Galactus' herald in the battle against him. Whether this transpires in First Steps remains to be seen.
