Fantastic Four producer Grant Curtis worked on Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, and says that one important lesson has been carried over into First Steps.
We’re just weeks away from The Fantastic Four: First Steps hitting screens, meaning the hype machine is kicking into high gear for the superhero reboot.
A new trailer gave us a first look at one of Marvel’s most powerful characters, the Fantastic Four popcorn buckets have been unveiled, and tickets have gone on sale, and promptly broken a 2025 record.
The people responsible for making the movie are also talking up a (Sue) storm, stating that the new comic book film is taking inspiration from some classics of the genre, as well as a Marvel legend.
How Raimi’s Spider-Man inspired Shakman’s Fantastic Four
Producer Grant Curtis collaborated with director Sam Raimi on the first Spider-Man trilogy, and told Collider that Fantastic Four: First Steps helmer Matt Shakman is following a similar path.
“One of the beauties of that and that I see in Matt Shakman is Sam always went back to the source material and said, ‘there’s a reason why Peter Parker and Spider-Man has been so popular for so long,’ and we have nothing to do with that 50 plus years at that time.
“And Matt always looked at it the same way. There’s a reason this IP has been popular for 60 years. Let’s embrace it. Let’s not run from it. Let’s challenge our screenwriters to tell the coolest Galactus story.”
Marvel legend Jack Kirby’s also looms large of new F4
Disney/MarvelIn terms of that Galactus story, the new movie is also looking even further back for inspiration, to the work of comic book artist and all-round Marvel genius Jack Kirby.
“I don’t think you can accurately give even the silhouette of Galactus without knowing Kirby right away,” says Curtis, who calls this new iteration of the character: “The most epic of the most epic that you can imagine. Because that’s the global stakes we’re dealing with, the universal stakes we’re dealing with. That’s Galactus.
“When Galactus’s gaze comes across your planet, you’re not in a good spot. I think that’s as big of a scope and scale you could ever ask a villain to bring with him or her. And that is what Galactus brings.
“One of the beautiful things about working with Kevin Feige and with Matt Shakman, they are totally in on sci-fi. I know that’s not a shock, but just to see them talk about all things sci-fi and really embracing that look, and Galactus and one of the original bad guys of the Marvel Universe.”
Fantastic Four: The First Steps is out on July 25, 2025. Before then you can check out our list of best superhero movies ever, plus every Marvel movie ranked by box office total.
