While there have been tributes to Jack Kirby over the years, with everything from the Thor: Ragnarok logo being in honor of him or Ant-Man featuring a cool reference to him, The Fantastic Four: First Steps took things to the next level when celebrating the late Marvel artist.

First Steps is the second cinematic reboot of the Fantastic Four franchise, and there’s a lot riding on this film. While cinema-goers have responded enthusiastically to many of the films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe,

This iteration of the Fantastic Four has a standalone adventure without all the burden of the MCU's history and cast of characters.

With Marvel's fourth cinematic version of their superhero family, will 'Fantastic Four: First Steps' be able to save the franchise?

Ryan Meinerding is having a full-circle moment. When he was in high school, one of his favorite characters was The Thing - so he sketched him. That artwork is featured in “Marvel Studios: The Art of Ryan Meinerding.

First Steps” stormed the domestic box office, topping superhero competitor “Superman” to finish No. 1 with $118 million.

“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” grossed $118 million at the domestic box office over the weekend—largely meeting earlier projections, but still placing it behind “Superman” for the biggest superhero film opening of 2025 so far.

“Fantastic Four” has a “distinct retro-futuristic aesthetic and family-focused themes,” according to Rotten Tomatoes. With a “certified fresh” critics score of 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, reactions to “Fantastic Four” seem largely positive — even if they sometimes come with qualifications.