Warning! This article contains spoilers for both Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
Thanks to the Thunderbolts* post-credits scene, we'd all assumed we knew how The Fantastic Four: First Steps was going to end; with Marvel's First Family having hopped on a ship and travelling, somehow, to Earth-616 on the Sacred Timeline. You know, the universe in which the Avengers exist...
Turns out, though, that studio boss Kevin Feige's claims that it was the franchise's "first standalone" film ever were totally fair – it doesn't connect to the wider MCU in any way. With that, fans are trying to figure out how we'll get from A) the conclusion of First Steps to B) the Thunderbolts* post-credits scene between now and the events of Avengers: Doomsday, which is due out in December 2026.
"Just finished up. Damn good. Surprised me a lot. I thought we would know why their ship was in the post credits before but I guess we will learn that at Doomsday," said a confused viewer on Reddit, before another replied: "Maybe Doom will kidnap Franklin. Fighting against F4. Then Franklin is accidentally warping both Doom and himself to 616 and F4 is searching for him now. Just fantasizing."
One of the Fantastic Four: First Steps post-credits scenes sees Doctor Doom interrupt story time for Sue (Vanessa Kirby) and her now-five-year-old son Franklin. We don't see his face, so it's not guaranteed it'll be Robert Downey Jr's version of the character – when variants and multiverses are a thing, we can't be sure – but it's obviously setting up a future storyline.
"It also could be possible that they came to 616 to search for help because they have defenders of Earth as well. Reed seems to be already aware of alternate dimensions. It's not impossible he built a wormhole machine to transport to some other universe," added a third. "Or the other theory is that since it's Dr. Doom who can teleport across dimensions effective immediately, he's the one who sent them there while he got his hands on Franklin. They were pursuing him in the spaceship, but Dr Doom opened a portal to send them to some other dimensions."
"I'm kinda disappointed that that didn't go anywhere. It makes it (and the other end credit scenes by default) feel like Marvel's just making stuff up and doesn't actually have a plan to fit things into each other," wrote another.
It's clear Marvel has a few tricks up its sleeve, with Feige having previously pointed out that the Fantastic Four ship seen at the end of Thunderbolts* isn't, in fact, the Excelsior, which Sue, Reed, Ben, and Johnny use in First Steps. We're just going to have to be patient to see what lies in store...
In the meantime, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is in cinemas now. For more, check out all the upcoming Marvel movies and shows on the way, as well as our guide on how to watch the Marvel movies in order.
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