The Fantastic Four might have only just taken their first steps into Marvel’s Cinematic Universe, but Marvel is going out of its way to cement the team as the focal point of its new phase. Even before their MCU debut, the Fantastic Four were teased at the very end of Thunderbolts*, in a credits scene that seemed to spoil the ending of The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Fortunately, the film put those fears to rest with a satisfying, self-contained adventure — but as the MCU looks ahead to Avengers: Doomsday and beyond, it won’t be the only potential spoiler in the Four’s path.
It won’t be long before we get to see the Fantastic Four return: one way or another, they’ll be teaming up with some version of the Avengers to face off against Doctor Doom. Next comes Secret Wars, a crossover set to break Marvel’s multiverse and reconfigure it in unexpected ways. And according to industry leaker Jeff Sneider, Marvel is already thinking further ahead, to what the MCU will look like after the events of Secret Wars. On the list of potential projects is a sequel to The Fantastic Four, for which director Matt Shakman is reportedly in talks to return.
The idea of Shakman returning feels like a no-brainer after Fantastic Four. The director has a clear reverence for the source material, along with a love for the iterations of the team that have come before. By setting Fantastic Four in a parallel universe, Shakman was able to deliver a fresh tone and aesthetic to the MCU for the first time in years. Earth-828 represents an ideal alternative to Marvel’s “Sacred Timeline,” where nearly all of its stories are set. More adventures set in Shakman’s retrofuturist world would certainly be nothing to sneeze at — and Sneider’s rumor seems to confirm that we’ll be getting them even after Doomsday.
Marvel boss Kevin Feige already teased that the Avengers would spend some time with the Fantastic Four on Earth-828 in Doomsday. In an interview with Marvel.com, he revealed that the Baxter Building, which the Fantastic Four call home, will have “a heck of a lot more people in it” in the upcoming team-up. Our heroes could find a way to travel between the two universes with ease, but there’s a sense that, after the multiverse is destroyed and remade in Secret Wars, the Fantastic Four will remain in their reality.
Before Fantastic Four, most assumed that the Four would eventually make their way to Earth-616 to live permanently, either due to the destruction of their world or from some other inconvenience. That could still happen, but with Shakman allegedly in talks to return, maybe the team will remain on their world — if only so the director can explore more of the utopia he helped build.
