The Fantastic Four's MCU Future Just Encountered An Unexpected Setback
Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm finally got to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe last year thanks to The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The byproduct of Disney acquiring 20th Century Fox assets in 2019, the movie was Marvel Studios' first time being able to bring the Fantastic Four into the MCU. Rather than stick them in the Sacred Timeline and have to explain why they were missing for the entire Infinity Saga, Marvel put them in a 1960s futuristic universe of their own. Directed by Matt Shakman and starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Fantastic Four: First Steps successfully relaunched this franchise as part of the MCU while teeing up their importance to the future. The movie holds an 86% with critics and 90% with audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as grossing $521 million at the box office. It was strong enough to be considered an overall success, especially since the characters will get a visibility boost over the next two years with major roles in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. Those reasons, plus the Fantastic Four's standing in Marvel history, all pointed to a strong belief that Marvel would get the band back together for a Fantastic Four sequel that would come out early in Phase 7. But that's now changed after Matt Shakman has signed on to direct a new Planet of the Apes movie for Disney.
© Marvel / © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection
Details on the timeline for Shakman to make Planet of the Apes have not been formally announced, but, notably, he and First Steps' writer Josh Friedman are both attached at this stage. Even without a release date, the movie is now positioned to be their next project, as neither has been officially confirmed to be working on a Fantastic Four sequel. This leaves only two options that will happen from here, and neither is good news for the Fantastic Four. Either Shakman will direct the MCU movie after Planet of the Apes, or Marvel will need to replace him to make the next installment sooner. Marvel should absolutely want Shakman back to direct the Fantastic Four sequel. He did an incredible job with the first film and has a proven track record with the MCU after his work on WandaVision, too. He nailed the sci-fi elements, the familial themes, the key relationships, and more. It should be a no-brainer to bring him back and let him continue this story, rather than him going the way of Scott Derrickson and Kenneth Branagh as MCU directors who didn't return for a sequel. The issue for Marvel is that waiting for Shakman will mean pushing the next Fantastic Four beyond the MCU's 2028 and 2029 release dates. Planet of the Apes movies take many years to make due to the CGI requirements. Shakman's new film doesn't have an official release date yet, but it won't be out until 2028 at the earliest, with 2029 arguably a more realistic timeframe. That would then mean he couldn't start working on another Fantastic Four until 2029 or 2030 for a release in 2030/31.
It'd be understandable if Marvel doesn't want to wait that long, even if they'd love to have Shakman back. The characters would go five or six years between standalone films and not get a new entry for multiple years after Secret Wars. It'd be better for the MCU to have the sequel ready for 2028 or 2029, which just might not be doable for Shakman, unless his new Planet of the Apes takes a backseat or falls apart.
With Marvel yet to confirm plans for Fantastic Four 2, Shakman may have gone to Planet of the Apes to secure his next big blockbuster feature rather than wait and see what happens in the MCU. And with him now busy with another project, there's a real chance he won't be able to return and Marvel will have to hire another director to do it. Waiting years for Shakman to make The Fantastic Four: First Steps' sequel isn't ideal, but neither is Marvel replacing him. Considering how widely assumed it was that he'd get to make a sequel that would be a key part of Phase 7's start, the uncertainty about the state of the follow-up is a truly unexpected development.
Release Date
July 25, 2025
Runtime
115 minutes
Director
Matt Shakman
Writers
Jeff Kaplan, Josh Friedman, Ian Springer, Eric Pearson, Kat Wood, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee
Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic
Vanessa Kirby
Sue Storm / Invisible Woman
