Fantastic Four: release date, cast, director, and everything else we know

The Fantastic Four are here: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach are joining the MCU as Marvel's First Family, with wild speculation that the movie will be set in an alternate universe in the 1960s. There's even a familiar robot hiding in the first reveal. We know what you're thinking: It's a lot to take in. That's where we come in.

We've broken down everything you need to know about the Fantastic Four cast, including a certain Silver Surfer, plus all of the details we spotted in the announcement, and everything we know about the plot so far so far. That also includes the Fantastic Four release date, which has shifted on multiple occasions.

Fantastic Four release date

After a shake-up in the Marvel release schedule, Fantastic Four will hit theaters on July 25, 2025. 

That's the third time it's been delayed, with it originally slated for November 8, 2024, then shifting to February 14, 2025, and then going for May 2, 2025.

Fantastic Four cast

The Fantastic Four cast has been confirmed! After many, many rumors, here's who will be who in Marvel's First Family and the supporting cast:

• Pedro Pascal - Reed Richards
• Vanessa Kirby - Sue Storm
• Joseph Quinn - Johnny Storm
• Ebon Moss-Bachrach - Ben Grimm
• Julia Garner - Silver Surfer/Shalla-Bal

The confirmation means that John Krasinski will not be back as Mister Fantastic. He played the character briefly in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but he is just a variant of the character.

The main four were announced in February, with Julia Garner joining the cast as the Silver Surfer in April.

There have also been reports that Galactus will enter the fray as the "main villain." Javier Bardem was once spoken about in relation to the role of the cosmic planet-eater, but nothing has come of it since. Marvel added fuel to the fire by using a QR code on a Fantastic Four poster to link to a handful of comics - including Galactus' first appearance. Interesting.

Fantastic Four plot

The Fantastic Four plot has not been revealed yet by Marvel, but Kevin Feige confirmed that the film won't be another origin story. The quartet originally gained superpowers after being exposed to cosmic rays on a scientific mission to outer space, but this will seemingly not be portrayed on screen again. "A lot of people know this origin story. A lot of people know the basics. How do we take that and bring something that they’ve never seen before? We’ve set a very high bar for ourselves with bringing that to the screen," Feige said at San Diego Comic-Con.

Since the origin story has formed the premise of the previous adaptations, it makes sense that Marvel would use a different approach for the upcoming movie. As well as this, the studio does tend to shy away from traditional storylines in their MCU movies. And given the Fantastic Four first debuted back in 1961, there are plenty of other directions they could head in. There are also plenty of villains the new movie could introduce, including the Silver Surfer, Galactus, Doctor Doom, and KI’rt. They’ve also had run-ins with Ronan the Accuser in the past, who was played by Lee Pace in Captain Marvel and Guardians of the Galaxy.

The first poster gives us a bit more of an idea about where Marvel could be heading with this iteration of the Fantastic Four. There are a lot of 1960s references in the first look, including a magazine that seems to be Life's December 13, 1963 edition. Pedro Pascal also teased the '60s link in his Instagram post about the casting. It's not yet clear if this time period will be in the normal MCU timeline or if we're in for some more multiversal shenanigans. 

We also have another introduction spotted in the poster: H.E.R.B.I.E., who was first introduced in the animated series The New Fantastic Four in 1978. He later debuted in the comics as well, but his inclusion here is intriguing. As a character, he was originally brought in to replace the Human Torch, but we're not yet sure what his role in the MCU will be.

Speaking of posters, a new poster of Fantastic Four's Johnny Storm seems to suggest we are in an alternate universe. Check out that backdrop.

Who is directing Fantastic Four?

As revealed at D23, WandaVision director Matt Shakman is officially directing Fantastic Four.

When Fantastic Four was announced, Jon Watts was signed on to direct the film. The filmmaker is behind the hugely successful trilogy Spider-Man: Homecoming, Spider-Man: Far From Home, and Spider-Man: No Way Home for Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios. However, he’s now confirmed he’s stepped back from taking on another superhero movie. 

He told The Hollywood Reporter: "Making three Spider-Man films was an incredible and life-changing experience for me. I’m eternally grateful to have been a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for seven years. I’m hopeful we’ll work together again, and I can’t wait to see the amazing vision for Fantastic Four brought to life." 

Looking for more Marvel? Check out our guide to how to watch the Marvel movies in order as well as what you need to know about the Marvel timeline.