One of the perks of watching any Marvel Cinematic Universe movie is finding countless Easter Eggs, references, and cameos. Fortunately, The Fantastic Four: First Steps wasn't any different from its predecessors. Marvel's First Family has taken over the big screen in an exhilarating and well-crafted adventure that rewards any superhero fan looking for secrets hidden in the background of a scene. So, without further ado, it's time to break them all down and explain what they really mean.
*** Warning: There will be minor spoilers for The Fantastic Four: First Steps ahead ***
Every Easter Egg in The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Jack Kirby: Right out of the gate, it's established that The Fantastic Four: First Steps takes place in a separate reality from that of the mainline MCU. Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben live on Earth-828, and this number is no simple coincidence. After all, it references Jack Kirby's birthday, which is August 28 (8/28). Jack is a comic book legend responsible for co-creating many superheroes, such as the Fantastic Four, along with Stan Lee. So, it's nice to see the MCU pay him tribute.
Stan Lee's catchphrase: During the opening moments of the movie, we learn that the ship the Fantastic Four boarded when they obtained their superpowers is called the Excelsior. Of course, this is a reference to one of Stan Lee's most popular catchphrases: "Excelsior!", which he even said during his cameo in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
One of the Fantastic Four's first villains: The Fantastic Four: First Steps contains multiple references to enemies that the super team has faced in comic book pages. Case in point, there's a blink-and-you-miss-it moment during the film's opening montage that showcases Marvel's First Family fighting a giant, green monster that appears to be coming from underground. Well, that's none other than Giganto, who made his debut in the first-ever issue of the Fantastic Four published in 1961.
The director's daughter: A well-known fact about The Fantastic Four: First Steps is that Matt Shakman directed it. However, an interesting tidbit that's less known is that Maisie Shakman, the director's daughter, makes a brief cameo in the movie. Remember that scene in the opening montage when the Human Torch saves a little girl from a monorail's falling track? Well, that's Maisie, and she even had her own movie poster (which you can see above).
The Future Foundation: As we learn in the movie, Sue brokers a peace deal with Mole Man and creates the Future Foundation in the process — an organization in which every participating country agrees to dismantle their armed forces. In comic book pages, the Future Foundation is created by Reed Richards in an attempt to bring together some of the world's brightest minds to protect Earth. Some of its most notable members, aside from the Fantastic Four, have been Spider-Man and... well, Doctor Doom. Speaking of which...
Doom's nation: Many different countries agreed to be a part of the Future Foundation in The Fantastic Four: First Steps... with one big exception in the form of Latveria. This fictional nation served as the birthplace of Doctor Doom in comic book pages and is now under the supervillain's reign. With that in mind, it isn't surprising to learn that Latveria didn't want to achieve world peace in the MCU.
The Fantastic Four from an alternate reality: At the very end of the movie's opening montage, we see groups of people thanking the Fantastic Four for saving the day countless times before. If you pay close attention, you'll see that Alex Hyde-White, Rebecca Staab, Jay Underwood, and Michael Bailey Smith all make an appearance in this segment. And wouldn't you know it, but they were the first actors to portray the Fantastic Four in live action in the unreleased 1994 movie.
The Human Torch's comic book design: Before Marvel's First Family gets together for dinner after the movie's opening montage, audiences discover that Reed and Sue are running late. As a result, Johnny decides to ease his hunger with some Lucky Charms. Well, if you look closely at the cereal's box, you'll notice it has an image of the Human Torch pulled straight from the source material. It's a nice callback to Johnny's 1961 look from comic book pages.
Reed and Sue's daughter, Valeria Richards: In comic book pages, Reed and Sue have a child after Franklin, who is called Valeria Richards. But while The Fantastic Four: First Steps is all about Franklin's life and immense power, there's a little Easter Egg that lets audiences know director Matt Shakman didn't forget about his sister. When the world learns that Sue's pregnant with her first child, everyone is eager to learn whether it will be a boy or a girl, or if there are "chances of twins". Granted, Franklin and Valeria aren't twins in comic book pages, but it's impossible not to think about them when the movie references siblings of the opposite sex. And who knows? Maybe Valeria will eventually make her MCU debut, much like her brother.
The Yancy Street Gang: When Ben goes out to buy cookies, he comes across a teacher named Rachel Rozman. The two start to talk, and then she asks Ben if he grew up on Yancy Street, which is a fictional location in comic book pages that serves as home to the Yancy Street Gang. This group of villains often comes face to face with The Thing. You know, it's kind of their thing (pun intended).
Multiple villains on the loose: Before Shalla-Bal's Silver Surfer makes her grand entrance, we learn that Reed tracked 47 criminal organizations and tipped off the police about them. Among those outlaws are real comic book villains such as The Puppet Master, The Wizard, and the mad alchemist Diablo. Besides, the opening montage of the movie revealed Marvel's First Family had already defeated Red Ghost (who was initially intended to be played by John Malkovich) along with the Mad Thinker.
WandaVision: When the Silver Surfer first arrives at Times Square, you'll notice there's a neon sign that reads "Westview appliance television". This is, of course, a reference to Westview, a town that The Scarlet Witch held hostage during the events of WandaVision. Fun fact: both the Disney+ series and The Fantastic Four: First Steps were directed by Matt Shakman.
Marvel Comics and forgotten monsters: Whenever there's a scene at Times Square, you'll also notice that there's a store called "Timely Comics". Well, this real-life comic book publishing company would evolve over time to become Marvel Comics. Besides, when Silver Surfer arrives on Earth-828, a blink-and-you-miss-it scene that takes place inside the Timely Comics shop. If you look closely, you'll see they have a comic book cover that reads "Oog lies again!", with an illustration that's taken straight from Tales of Suspense No. 27. Oog was an alien created by Jack Kirby who wreaked havoc on Earth-616 after his ship crashed there.
Fin Fang Foom: When the Fantastic Four board the Excelsior and follow the Silver Surfer's trail in search of Galactus, Ben asks a very important question to the rest of the group: "What are we up against? Some sort of space dragon?". This is a reference to Iron Man's comic book villain, Fin Fang Foom, which is an extraterrestrial being that heavily resembles a dragon.
WHIH: When the Fantastic Four return to Earth after having their first encounter with Galactus, you'll notice one of the news channels reporting on the event is WHiH, which is a fictional news front that has appeared in many other MCU projects before, such as Iron Man 2 and Captain America: Civil War.
Those were all the Easter Eggs and references we were able to find in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Did we miss any? Let us know on our social media pages on Bluesky, Instagram, and Twitter. And stick around with Bam! Smack! Pow! for everything superhero-related.