It’s no secret that the superhero family The Fantastic Four is poised to lead the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the coming decade. Part of the fun of Marvel Studios acquiring its “toys” back from 20th Century Fox came in Kevin Feige being able to put his own stamp on the Fantastic Four and The X-Men, which gradually has been happening in the MCU. Naturally, there is a lot of attention being paid to the upcoming Avengers movies – Doomsday and Secret Wars – but beyond that, it will land on the mutants and the Future Foundation to carry the Marvel torch.
Which means that the idea of “superhero fatigue” is a myth to which Marvel Studios does not subscribe. Feige’s dream production house plans to make Marvel movies for as long as possible, figuring out new ways to reinvent the genre. That topic came up while CinemaBlend was visiting the London set of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and asking producer Grant Curtis if he saw any signs of fatigue in this line of storytelling. Mind you, Curtis is producing one of Marvel’s most-hyped movies. But he was candid when he addressed the idea of fatigue, and told us:
I don't see it. I mean, just because I'm a fanboy at heart, and I continue to want to hear and see these stories. So, Kevin still gets my money. And I think there are a lot of great stories to tell. He is the great puppet master. I say that with all due respect, narratively. And I know he's got a lot more hits coming out of his brain that will continue to blow people's minds. … I'm not telling tales out of school. Kevin's been very transparent that these characters are in Avengers 5. So I do think (that) if we do our jobs right, and I think – as you guys are seeing – we are, I think we are teeing a lot of other stories up. If you are a fan of the comics, you know that the universe and beyond is truly the playground of the Fantastic Four.
Back in 2008, the initial building blocks of the MCU had to rely on characters that Marvel had the rights to. Which is why the studio started with Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor as opposed to making an MCU Spider-Man movie straight out of the gate. In a way, with Phase 6, Marvel can figure out a way to start over, and reboot the MCU. The MCU Multiverse gives the company a lot of freedom to bring in new versions of classic characters. But it also allows Marvel the creative leeway to rewrite the storyline when something as unexpected as the Jonathan Majors scandal takes root.
To that end, we asked Grant Curtis about the previous plans to make Avengers 5 an adaptation of The Kang Dynasty, and how Matt Shakman’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps had to shift its approach in the wake of those alterations. Curtis told CinemaBlend:
Well, that is Avengers 5. And you know, the way Marvel works, I'm all in on Fantastic Four. I do know elements of what's going on outside of this (movie), but we're usually so focused on the task at hand. I can't tell you all the ins and outs of the Kang Dynasty and where that does or does not happen now. But yeah, we're just trying to tell the best story that we possibly can, so the audience cares about these characters, and wants to see more of them.
We will know if that works when the third MCU movie of 2025, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, lands in theaters on July 25.
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