Director Matt Shakman stopped by to speak to Black Girl Nerds briefly in the press line during San Diego Comic-Con to discuss his latest project, The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Coming off the heels of the critically acclaimed Disney+ series WandaVision which he also directed, Shakman told BGN that this film is “it’s own unique story” and that the tone and themes from WandaVision compared to this feature is different. In WandaVision, the series is a blend of classic television and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in which Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) – two super-powered beings living idealized suburban lives – begin to suspect that everything is not as it seems.
In The Fantastic Four: First Steps,one of Marvel’s most iconic families makes it back to the big screen in a futuristic,1960s-inspired story. This may sound similar to the old-timey sitcom setting WandaVision serves as a backdrop, but Shakman assures us that although there may be some things that may crossover, because of his personal stylistic preferences, the two intellectual properties are very different.
If you missed the Hall H panel at comic-con, a Fantasticar floated above the crowd against a retrofuturistic New York City backdrop. During the Hall H panel Shakman says, “[This film] is more than just the visual aesthetics, the ‘60s to me is all about optimism. It’s about looking to the stars and dreaming about traveling into space. It’s about how with the right heart and the right mind, you can do anything — which is what the Fantastic Four is all about.”
Filming will resume Tuesday in London and as photos emerge on social media of what has come out of comic-con as well as interviews from the cast, you can already see the hype around this film and fans are waiting with anticipation.
Check out our interview below with Matt straight out of comic-con:
Interviewer: Jamie Broadnax
Videographer: Chalice Williams
Video Editor: Jamie Broadnax
The Fantastic Four: First Steps premieres in theaters July 25, 2025