The Fantastic Four: First Steps is just around the corner, and the film is embracing a newer aspect of FF lore in the form of the Future Foundation, an organization run by the team in the new MCU film.
In comics, the name represents the evolution of the Fantastic Four from a small team of family members to a bigger organization with numerous members, including Spider-Man and Doctor Doom.
The Future Foundation debuted in comics back in 2010's Fantastic Four #576 by writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Neil Edwards. Founded in the wake of the death of Johnny Storm/the Human Torch (who, like many comic characters, eventually got better), the Future Foundation is more than just a superhero team, it's also a school for young super scientists.
Anchored by classic Fantastic Four members Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Sue Storm Richards/Invisible Woman, and Ben Grimm/the Thing, the Future Foundation also includes Peter Parker/Spider-Man as the fourth core member of the team, who joins per the explicit wishes of his deceased best friend Johnny Storm.
But the additions don't stop there. Along with Spidey, who has been a close ally of the Fantastic Four since the earliest days of the Marvel Universe, the Future Foundation brings in none other than Doctor Doom, who, at the time, had been drained of his massive intellect.
In terms of the school part of the Future Foundation, Franklin and Valeria Richards (children of Reed and Sue Richards, naturally) are included, along with Alex Power of the Power Pack, Bentley-23 (a child clone of the Fantastic Four's old enemy the Wizard), and even children from other cultures and other worlds, like Wakanda, Atlantis, and more. And of course there's also fan favorite mutant duo Artie and Leech, as well as caretaker Dragon Man – a 10-foot-tall android dragon.
Even after the return of the Human Torch and the restoration of the Fantastic Four, the Future Foundation has remained a part of the team's mythos. For a short time, members of the Future Foundation including Scott Lang/Ant-Man, She-Hulk, Medusa of the Inhumans, and Ms. Thing (a pop star who wears a mechanical suit that gives her the appearance and powers of the Thing) filled in for the Fantastic Four while they were displaced in time and space.
And, in the aftermath of 2015's Secret Wars, the Foundation remained with the Fantastic Four in the Multiverse, helping rebuild the many lost realities that were destroyed as part of the event story, returning to the mainstream reality in 2020.
In the current Fantastic Four comic, the extended Richards/Grimm family are traveling around the country while also dealing with Doctor Doom having conquered the world as the Sorcerer Supreme in Marvel's ongoing 'One World Under Doom' status quo. This means the Future Foundation is inactive. But, with the MCU Fantastic Four reboot movie embracing the concept, it's very likely that the Future Foundation will return in comics sooner rather than later.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps hits theaters on July 25 to kick off Marvel Phase 6. For more, check out our guides to upcoming Marvel movies and shows and how to watch the Marvel movies in order.
