The original MCU concept art for The Fantastic Four: First Steps villain Galactus has been revealed by its artist, Ryan Meinerding in an interview with Variety about his process in coming up with the designs. The newly unveiled art makes it clear that the MCU Galactus was always planned to be comic accurate from the start - something I truly appreciate - and that it the design specifically aims at capturing the legendary Jack Kirby's all-time-great art.
Check it out:
Concept art for Galactus in ‘THE FANTASTIC FOUR’(Source: https://t.co/7TAFOEtCZ2) pic.twitter.com/zigrVcXpw1July 28, 2025
"There was a lot of work on Galactus, trying to figure out the appropriate scale and how he's going to be experienced for the first time, and we did key frames surrounding that. But Galactus was a complete joy to work on," Meinerding, who is creative director and head of visual development at Marvel Studios as well as a character designer.
"He was challenging to try to get as much detail on. He was meant to be one of those cosmic characters that you almost can't fully appreciate how big he is. We also stayed close to the Kirby design. So I'd say that out of the designs I worked on, Galactus and The Thing are probably two of the most Kirby-inspired characters I've ever been able to work on."
The film's fidelity to the fantastic sci-fi visuals of Jack Kirby, who created the entire visual language of the Fantastic Four (and revolutionized comic art in the process), is one of the best things about it. I felt the sense of charming awe and cosmic wonder that the comics bring conveyed on the big screen in a way I didn't think was quite possible. And as it turns out, Meinerding's beautifully faithful concept art is a big part of that success.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is now in theaters, kicking 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.
