The Fantastic Four: First Steps is shrouded in mystery, with plot details a closely guarded secret at Marvel Studios. But we now know one new thing — revealed by the actor who plays The Thing himself.
Appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Ebon Moss-Bachrach dodged questions about The Fantastic Four, warning the host that he was media trained and wouldn’t spoil anything about the upcoming MCU film after a cheeky question about Dr. Doom actor Robert Downey, Jr potentially appearing on set.
Kimmel kept at it, sparking Moss-Bachrach into talking in vague terms about the process of doing motion capture work for the superhero. Kimmel then asked if he smoked a cigar during filming, trying to get confirmation that The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ version of The Thing smokes a cigar in the movie, as the comic book version is famous for doing.
"Er, no," was the slightly concerned response.
Then: “Do you say the words, ‘it’s clobberin’ time!’ at any point?”
It’s here Moss-Bachrach perhaps revealed something he shouldn’t have: "I slipped it in there a couple of times."
Amid excited applause, Moss-Bachrach quickly added: “We’ll see what happens! I don’t have final cut on this one. So we’ll see.”
Kimmel, satisfied, thanked Moss-Bachrach for giving him a morsel of new information. “You gave me something that you probably shouldn’t have,” he quipped.
“Yeah, and now it’s going to be a long ride home,” Moss-Bachrach sighed.
In November, Marvel Studios issued an update on The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The upcoming MCU movie, due out July 25, 2025, stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing.
Also listed in the update were Ralph Ineson as Galactus, Julia Garner as Silver Surfer, Paul Walter Hauser, John Malkovich, Natasha Lyonne, and Sarah Niles. The director is Matt Shakman and the producer is of course Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige.
Here’s the official The Fantastic Four: First Steps synopsis:
Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family — Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) as they face their most daunting challenge yet.
Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, they must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner). And if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal.
At NYCC in October, attendees were greeted with artwork that featured a number of important faces from the MCU, including a first live-action look at The Fantastic Four’s Humanoid Experimental Robot B-Type Integrated Electronics a.k.a. H.E.R.B.I.E.
Fans are speculating that Robert Downey, Jr. will return to the MCU as iconic Marvel villain Doctor Doom at some point in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, or at least be teased in some way. Feige has confirmed that the Fantastic Four will appear in both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
