Six years after a posthumous MCU cameo in Avengers: Endgame, Stan Lee also made a surprising cameo in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. What makes the cameo so surprising is that the Marvel Comics legend tragically pᴀssed away in November 2018, leaving behind a legacy that recently culminated in the celebrated adaptation of Marvel’s First Family.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is largely believed to have hit the mark with Stan Lee’s vision for Marvel’s First Family after several decades of mixed results with adapting the team into live-action. It was distinctly evocative of the 1960s, the decade in which Stan Lee co-created Marvel’s first super-team with fellow visionary, Jack Kirby.

The тιтular characters also struck the right tone, with The Fantastic Four: First Steps earning widespread praise for its focus on the family dynamic that so effortlessly charms most audiences. These factors combine to make The Fantastic Four: First Steps feel like a fitting tribute – so it is no surprise that director Matt Shakman made the effort to involve Stan Lee himself.

When Stan Lee’s Cameo Appears In The Fantastic Four: First Steps

Despite the technology available to modern-day productions, Stan Lee isn’t brought to The Fantastic Four: First Steps using CGI magic. Instead, as The Fantastic Four: First Steps leans into its 1960s setting, Stan Lee is portrayed by Greg Haiste in an era-appropriate guise, notably lacking the iconic mustache synonymous with Stan Lee in later years.

Haiste appears alongside Martin Dickinson, who resembles Jack Kirby, as the Silver Surfer descends into New York, with both peering out from a Timely Comics office window. Both actors are specifically intended to portray the Marvel Comics legends, as Timely Comics was the original name of the publisher before it was renamed to Marvel Comics in the 1960s.

A sH๏τ from within the office also reveals sketches of some classic Timely Comics illustrations, as well as the Timely Comics shield logo. The cameo is brief but effective in continuing Stan Lee’s legendary habit of appearing in Marvel movie adaptations throughout history.

Why Stan Lee’s Cameo In The Fantastic Four: First Steps Is Meaningful

After decades of appearing in Marvel Comics adaptations, having Stan Lee appear in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, in particular, is especially touching. The Fantastic Four is the first team of superheroes that Stan Lee created with Jack Kirby, and arguably launched his legendary comic book career into the stratosphere.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps also encapsulates the elements that made the тιтular team so unique when they debuted in 1961. Unlike most superheroes of that era, the Fantastic Four were flawed and human in every way, apart from their mind-bending powers – something that Stan Lee was responsible for.

Marvel Studios CEO Kevin Feige has made no secret of the fact that The Fantastic Four: First Steps was the movie he was most excited about in recent years. Between all this and the critical success of the movie, it feels like the perfect stage to pay tribute to the late Stan Lee.