Kevin Feige Opens Up About THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS Underperforming at the Box Office Despite Its Fresh Approach

When The Fantastic Four: First Steps hit theaters in July 2025, Marvel Studios clearly expected it to be one of the biggest movies of the summer. It introduced Marvel's First Family to the MCU, featured a massive post-credits tease for Avengers: Doomsday, and carried the weight of launching a franchise fans had been waiting years to see.

Instead, the movie ended up being one of Marvel's biggest disappointments of the year. During a recent interview with Variety, Kevin Feige openly acknowledged that Fantastic Four: First Steps didn't perform the way Marvel had hoped, even though he still believes the movie brought something fresh to the superhero genre.

"Many things can be true at once. I think last year's Fantastic Four looked and sounded like nothing that had been done in a superhero movie before, and it only [grossed] $521 million."

That worldwide total of $521.9 million wasn't a disaster by normal Hollywood standards, but for a Marvel tentpole carrying this level of anticipation, it was undeniably underwhelming.

The film even finished behind Superman, which opened during the same month and went on to earn $618.7 million globally. Ironically, DC wasn't immune to box office struggles either, as this year's Supergirl stumbled badly and currently sits at just under $126 million worldwide.

Meanwhile, Marvel found itself celebrating a completely different movie. Spider-Man: Brand New Day exploded out of the gate, shattering Avengers: Endgame's record for the biggest domestic opening weekend ever. After only one weekend in theaters, the film has already climbed to an incredible $932 million worldwide.

Feige believes the difference came down to the emotional core of the story. "Brand New Day is very directly a part four. It picks up right after the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home and yet it tells a story that resonates.

“It's ultimately about loneliness and the dangers of staying in our apartments by ourselves, looking at our phones. That resonates across cultures and across the globe right now," Feige explained.

It's an interesting comparison because Fantastic Four: First Steps certainly looked gorgeous. The retro-futuristic aesthetic, production design, costumes, and visual style gave it an identity that stood apart from most superhero films. I actually enjoyed it when I first saw it and walked away feeling pretty positive about the experience.

Then I started rewatching it. With each rewatch, the movie lost more of its shine. The things that initially impressed me started taking a back seat as the cracks became impossible to ignore.

The story doesn't hold together nearly as well as I first thought, several characters and story arcs feel underdeveloped, and some emotional moments don't earn the impact they're aiming for.

It's one of those movies that gets weaker the more you revisit it, and that's disappointing because the ingredients for something truly special were all there.

I still appreciate what the filmmakers were trying to do stylistically, but looking back now, I think the movie should've been much better than it ultimately was. The concept was great and the visuals were memorable. The execution just didn't fully come together.

This isn't the end of Marvel's First Family, though. Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn are all returning as Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Ben Grimm, and Johnny Storm in Avengers: Doomsday. Marvel is keeping plot details tightly under wraps, but fans won't have to wait much longer to see where these characters go next.

Whether Doomsday gives Marvel's First Family the bigger, more satisfying adventure they deserve remains to be seen, but after the mixed reception to Fantastic Four: First Steps, there's certainly plenty of room for the team to come back stronger.

For now, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is dominating theaters, while Avengers: Doomsday is set to arrive on December 18.