Mister Fantastic is set to make his Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) debut in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and by the looks of the trailer, his story is remarkably similar to Peter Parker’s in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Marvel’s First Family is finally joining the MCU with the entire team appearing in their upcoming film. And while the events of the film haven’t been completely exposed ahead of the movie dropping, the trailers give a lot of insight into what to expect.
As it stands, Reed Richards and the rest of The Fantastic Four will face off against the incredibly powerful Galactus, as the Devourer of Worlds has chosen to target their home. And thanks to updates from the director, Matt Sharkman, it’s confirmed that this version of the team exists in a world where The Fantastic Four are the only superheros, which explains the unique setting and time period. However, the story does appear to have a lot in common with an earlier Multiverse Saga release.
Spider-Man: No Way Home Makes Peter Responsible For Putting His World In Grave Danger
Peter Parker’s Wish To Remain Anonymous Backfired
In Spider-Man: No Way Home, Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man, is dealing with the aftermath of having his secret idenтιтy exposed to the world by Mysterio. This leads to a lot of chaos and trouble for Peter and the people closest to him, and, understandably, he wants to find a way to take it all back. Enter Doctor Stephen Strange, with his mastery of the mystic arts to help. Spidey and Strange work together to cast a spell that will wipe Peter’s idenтιтy from the minds of everyone, but due to some last-minute changes by Peter, things go wrong.
The mismatched spell ends up bringing over several villains from across the multiverse, as well as a couple of web-headed variants, and the future of the multiverse hangs in the balance. Strange instructs Peter to gather the multiversal visitors so he can repair the damage to the multiverse before it’s too late. But when all is said and done, the price to pay for fixing Earth-616 and getting everyone home to their realities was Peter being erased from everyone’s minds, including his best friend and girlfriend.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps Appears To Set Up A Similar Story For Mister Fantastic
Reed Richards Feels A Burden Of Responsibility When Galactus Comes
Interestingly, Reed Richards appears to be on a similar trajectory. The trailers outline how Reed has been studying the multiverse, and his research has led to some unexpected success. However, when Reed states “It’s my fault. I stretched the bounds of space… and they heard,” it appears likely that his meddling with the multiverse seems to have also heralded some unexpected visitors.
Now, how Reed’s story pans out in the MCU remains to be seen, but the fact that his actions appear to have brought immense threats that could potentially wipe out life on Earth, and even in his reality, is perfectly in line with the other biggest moments in the Multiverse Saga so far. With one of the chief among them being Spidey’s meddling. In this way, both Reed and Peter appear to have a lot of guilt and concern as the responsibility for saving the world falls on their shoulders.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Story May Flip Part Of No Way Home’s Own To Bring The Team Into The Multiverse Saga
Despite The Similarities, The Endings Are Sure To Diverge
But, one major departure that The Fantastic Four: First Steps may have from the earlier MCU project is the outcome. Spider-Man was eventually able to round up the multiversal bad guys and send them back home. This did come with the unexpected caveat that he needed to have Strange wipe everyone’s memory of Peter Parker, but it also ended with the world being safe once again thanks to the web-swinging hero. But if the rumors about The Fantastic Four’s ending are true, Reed and his family may not be so fortunate.
There is a lot of speculation that Reed and The Fantastic Four will lose their fight against Galactus, and their world is consumed. This leads to them escaping from their own reality, and crossing over into the Earth-616 timeline. If this is indeed the case, then Reed Richards’ loss in The Fantastic Four: First Steps could put him on the warpath in Avengers: Doomsday and beyond.