First Steps after Thunderbolts* was, thankfully, avoided by Marvel Studios. Thanks to upcoming Marvel movies like Avengers: Doomsday, the storylines of Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four: First Steps are somewhat linked.

First Steps hits theaters this weekend, audiences will get a very good look at a very retro spaceship, the Excelsior. But didn't we already see this rocketship before? Haven't the Fantastic Four already crossed over into the main Marvel universe?

“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” grossed $118 million at the domestic box office over the weekend—largely meeting earlier projections, but still placing it behind “Superman” for the biggest superhero film opening of 2025 so far.

First Steps” is the third Marvel movie to hit theaters this year, but it packs way more hidden references and nods than “Captain America: Brave New World” or “Thunderbolts.” It’s not on the same level of Easter eggs as last year’s “Deadpool and Wolverine,

Maybe “superhero fatigue” is a thing of the past – with DC’s “Superman” still soaring in theaters, Marvel’s “Fantastic Four” reboot is set to join the fun this weekend, with positive momentum.

The best thing about First Steps is the aesthetic. It’s far and away my favorite part of this film, and that’s a problem because as much as I do enjoy a solid retrofuturistic aesthetic, it’s not enough to make a mediocre movie worth watching. This is all style over substance.

Marvel is having another crack at making a Fantastic Four movie that people actually like this week, and it looks like, at the fourth time of asking, they might have finally nailed it. The reviews for First Steps are in ahead of its arrival in theaters this Thursday,

As the filmmaker's three-year journey wound down on the project, he realized a key moment was missing, and managed to shoot it within a few months of the film's opening.