Galactus is coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and in doing so has revealed the mistake that ruined Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. The MCU’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family to the MCU timeline. However, in bringing their most infamous villain with them, Marvel can improve upon the past.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer brought Galactus to the big screen in 2007. However, it made a mistake that essentially doomed the franchise: Galactus was rubbish. The trailer for Fantastic Four: First Steps has already demonstrated a far superior rendition, which highlights the precise problem that doomed Rise of the Silver Surfer.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Trailers Underline How Big Galactus Really Is

The trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps doesn’t waste a second showing scale – especially in regard to Galactus. Though audiences don’t get a full reveal, there are some crucial moments: Galactus’s enormous shadow looming over New York and his great feet stomping cars on the streets. While these glimpses are fleeting, it proves that the MCU’s Galactus will indeed be large.

However, it is worth noting that Galactus is traditionally cosmically large. He is a тιтan, so while he’s the size of a city, he’s not quite the same size as the source material. In the comics, Galactus adjusts his size depending on the planetary body he’s interacting with, but he’s rarely (if ever) human-sized.

Marvel seems intent on maintaining that perception of grandeur, and it instantly sets him apart from other villains. This Galactus feels larger than Thanos, Kang, or any previous MCU antagonist, literally and figuratively. Yet it is unclear whether he will be as large as he’s typically depicted in the comics. An issue that doomed Rise of the Silver Surfer.

Galactus’ Size Seems To Have Led To Rise of the Silver Surfer’s Controversial Design Choice

Back in 2007, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer depicted Galactus on the big screen for the first time. Unfortunately, it immediately buried him beneath one of the most baffling design choices in comic book movie history. Rather than depict the cosmic enтιтy as a towering humanoid in armor, the film rendered Galactus as an enormous swirling space cloud.

There was no face. No presence. Just shadows, lightning, and vague outlines. The reason appears to be that the studio didn’t know how to handle depicting a villain of Galactus’s size and so shifted to a more cosmic and ethereal presence.

The filmmakers either feared that a mᴀssive humanoid villain would look silly or lacked the CGI capabilities to convincingly render him on screen. Yet in trying to make Galactus less visually goofy, the film sacrificed the very element that made him menacing: his form. The result was a villain who felt more like a plot device than a character.

Jack Kirby and Stan Lee didn’t create Galactus to be vague. They gave him a face, a costume, a voice, and a presence. He was a god-like being whose mere existence challenged the morality and scale of superhero storytelling. The 2007 film tried to “modernize” Galactus by turning him into an unknowable storm, erasing everything that made the character unique.

The MCU Gives Marvel A Chance To Show A Comic-Accurate Live-Action Galactus On-Screen

The MCU has been building toward the cosmic side of Marvel for years. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, Eternals and Loki began introducing giant cosmic beings, including the Celestials. The Fantastic Four: First Steps will see this theme crescendo by introducing Galactus. More importantly, the MCU has the visual effects resources and world-building experience to do him justice.

A comic-accurate Galactus in live-action isn’t just possible now, it’s necessary. With the Multiverse Saga raising the stakes, Galactus represents a different kind of threat: ancient, unknowable, and universal. He’s not motivated by vengeance or ambition; he devours worlds to survive.

To convey that gravitas, Marvel Studios knows they need to show him, not just hint at his existence. This isn’t a moment for subtlety or metaphor. It’s time to put the towering purple helmet, the glowing eyes, and the sky-splitting silhouette on full display.

What the MCU is getting right is that Galactus isn’t just a plot-driving machine. He’s not just here to raise the stakes. He’s a character with an alien logic, a tragic necessity, and a scale that makes humanity feel small.

That’s exactly how he should feel. When audiences finally see him in full, it’ll be even more clear why the cloud version in 2007 failed so badly: Galactus isn’t meant to be hidden. He’s meant to be worshiped, feared, and above all, seen.

The Newest Fantastic Four Trailer Teases Just How Comic-Accurate Galactus Will Be

Perhaps the most exciting moment in the final The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment. It featurees what appears to be Galactus emerging from an enormous mechanical chamber floating in deep space. The design looks ripped directly from classic Jack Kirby comics, with colossal mechanics and machinery.

This chamber looks strikingly similar to Galactus’ incubation pods from the comics, used when he hibernates or rejuvenates between feeding cycles. It also appears notably larger than Galactus’s other appearances in the trailer. Together these signal a comic-accurate, size-changing interpretation.

The MCU’s attention to this kind of detail is a promising sign. It shows that Marvel isn’t just adapting the surface look of Galactus, but embracing the surrounding mythology. The pod suggests that Galactus isn’t just a force of destruction, but a living cosmic enтιтy with routines, needs, and a place in the larger structure of the universe.

The MCU seems to understand what is required more than the previous entries. Galactus should terrify, not because he’s invisible or incomprehensible, but because he’s completely visible and still impossible to stop. A being who can stand toe-to-toe with Celestials and outsize them isn’t something to hide in the shadows.

The decision to go big, literally, honors the comics and fixes one of the most disappointing misfires in Marvel movie history. It’s ironic: by making Galactus visible, tangible, and enormous, the MCU is making him more mythic, not less. It’s a thrilling development that makes The Fantastic Four: First Steps feel even more exciting and vital.