Warning. If you want to dodge spoilers for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, be forewarned that we’ll be diving into major spoiler territory. While it was revealed in trailers leading up to The Fantastic Four: First Steps that Galactus was after Franklin Richards, son of Reed and Sue, the world eater wanted him for a very specific reason not documented in promotional material. Galactus wants someone to replace him, and thanks to the power that is inside of Franklin, the newest addition to the fantastic family might just fit the bill. Refusing to give up their son, the Fantastic Four turn down Galactus’ offer of sparing their world for Franklin and begin a plan of taking down the purple behemoth.
The End is The Beginning
Earlier in the film, Reed develops a teleporter that manages to transport a single egg from one part of a room to the other. Using the basic premise behind this new tech, Richards comes up with a plan to open a “bridge” that will take Galactus from their Earth to millions of miles away. Unfortunately, they’ll need to use Franklin as bait for the world devourer.
Following a hard-hitting fight against Galactus, a final push to get the antagonist through the bridge is made by the Silver Surfer herself. Johnny Storm managed to successfully bring her over to their side earlier in the film, and now, the Power Cosmic-wielding powerhouse sacrificed herself to knock her former master into the teleporter. While Galactus might have been defeated, this was far from the end of the Fantastic Four’s problems.
During the fight, Sue has to use her powers to such a degree in an attempt to force Galactus through the gate that the sheer stress is enough to take her life. Attempting to use CPR to resuscitate her, Reed comes to the terrible conclusion that his wife is dead as all the members of the team mourn. In a surprise twist, Franklin uses his cosmic powers for the first time and brings his mother back to life, reforming the team and creating a happy ending.
Three Men And a Baby
First Steps ends the same way that it started, with the team joining a televised talk show, but this time, Franklin is with them to create a “Fantastic Five.” Unfortunately, before the team can partake in the interview, they are called to an unknown emergency that has them splitting the scene. Hilariously, we get one final scene with Reed, Ben, and Johnny attempting to put together a car seat for Franklin as they journey forth, taking much longer than usual to do so. Of course, there are two post-credits scenes as well, but this is how the main story of The Fantastic Four: The First Steps comes to an end.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps arrives in theaters on July 25, 2025.
