MCU: First Look at Galactus' Special Powers (Photos)

The Fantastic Four: First Steps debuted a first look at Galactus using his special comic book powers in the MCU. Besides scant glimpses in marketing (and some leaked promotional shots), Ralph Ineson's Marvel villain has largely been kept under a veil of secrecy leading into First Steps' theatrical debut. While the movie has been open in showing the powers of characters like Pedro Pascal's Mr. Fantastic and Joseph Quinn's Human Torch, how Galactus' powers will be brought to the screen has remained a massive question mark.

Marvel recently posted a new spot for The Fantastic Four: First Steps on TikTok, revealing a look at the massive destruction that Galactus' powers are capable of. A shot from the new footage showcases Galactus using his abilities to destroy a planet, teasing just what Marvel's First Family are going up against in their MCU debut.

That wasn't the only recent display of Galactus' might, though. A new LEGO-themed image has given audiences a glimpse at Galactus' special powers as they will appear in Fantastic Four: First Steps. The character has been seen towering over New York City in promotional material for Matt Shakman's new MCU movie, but if he is going to be anything like his comic book counterpart, he will come sporting an alarming arsenal of cosmic super-powered abilities. 

Fans on Reddit have spotted Fantastic Four villain Galactus using his Power Cosmic superpower as a part of the movie's recent LEGO tie-in poster. 

The image sees the world of First Steps brickified, with its central team of heroes fleeing from a battle with the gargantuan villain. Coming from the intergalactic threat's hands, though, are some inexplicable beams, causing the ground to crumble and the air to erupt in smoke. 

The beams themselves look to be the first glimpse at the Power Cosmic, a long-standing ability of the bombastic big bad. 

Power Cosmic is essentially the harnessing of latent energy in the universe that can be used in various ways.

This often manifests in the comics as large yellow beams that characters like Galactus can shoot from their hands. It also pops up as the reason the character can travel the universe and vastly change scale.

The strange cosmic power was previously seen on screen in 2007's Fantastic Four: Rise of Silver Surfer, although it looked vastly different from how it had in the comics. Instead of being a laser-like energy, it turned Galactus into a massive, cloud-like being that could swallow Earth whole if it wanted to.

Galactus is one of several villains in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, leading the antagonistic charge along with Silver Surfer, Moleman, and the recently debuted Giganto. The character, voiced by Game of Thrones star Ralph Ineson, will arrive on the doorstep of the movie's alternate Earth to satiate his planetary hunger. 

The new MCU epic comes to theaters on Friday, July 25, kicking off Marvel Studios' sixth phase of super-powered storytelling. It stars Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as the Fantastic Four, all confirmed to appear in next year's Avengers: Doomsday. 

How Will The Power Cosmic Play Into Fantastic Four: First Steps?

The Power Cosmic is one of the most significant Marvel Comics concepts yet to make its way into the MCU, so it's exciting to see the franchise finally taking a stab at this long-standing comic book superpower. 

Fans have not yet seen Galactus use the otherworldly energy field directly in the film, but looking at these LEGO tie-in images, one can pretty easily assume where the movie is going with the new special ability. 

When Fantastic Four: First Steps' titular team needs to go to battle with the colossal space-faring entity, the Power Cosmic will likely be his go-to weapon to take them on. 

It will also be the very force that allows the Fantastic Four to interact with Galactus at all, as it allows the character to shrink and grow at will, turning him from the size of a planet to that of a skyscraper for his Earth-based pursuits. 

As the character has already been seen walking the streets of First Steps' retro-futurist New York City, the Power Cosmic has to be in play in the film to get him down to that 'boots on the ground' level.  

It will be interesting to see just how all-powerful the Power Cosmic is in the MCU. In the comics, its strength is kind of undefined. Putting that kind of nebulous scale on-screen will be a delicate dance, but one that Marvel Studios seems capable of tackling without repeating the mistakes of past on-screen iterations of the character.