'Fantastic Four' Director's Biggest Challenge? For Matt Shakman, It’s More Than Just a Blockbuster
We will see whether it will stand the test of time and expectations.
What do you do when the weight of an entire cinematic universe rests on your shoulders — and you’re told to make it feel… human?
That’s exactly where director Matt Shakman finds himself with Marvel’s upcoming Fantastic Four: First Steps. A film expected not only to reboot one of comic book history’s most iconic teams, but to resuscitate a struggling franchise machine. After years of MCU domination, the tide has turned. The audience is tougher. The pressure is louder. The stakes? Planet-sized.
But Shakman isn’t listening to the corporate roar. Instead, he’s tuning into something quieter — something closer to home.
"There's a lot of pressure in wanting to do right by the characters, wanting to do right by Kirby and Lee, wanting to do right by all of the amazing comic writers who have been a part of developing this over the last 60-plus years" he says in an interview with The Variety. In the same breath, he adds:
"Corporate pressures aren’t my burdens to shoulder."
"My greatest challenge" he says, "is making a movie that feels personal."
And that challenge begins with the heart of the story: Reed and Sue aren’t just superhero icons — they’re new parents.
"They are parents first" Shakman explains.
"They are scientists and explorers second. And they're superheroes only when they have to be. I come at this as a dad and as a husband. That's what makes it so special to me."
Let’s take a moment to process that. The man entrusted with Marvel’s First Family isn’t leading with spectacle — he’s leading with empathy. And maybe that’s exactly what the genre needs right now.
The film stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm — all set to anchor not just Fantastic Four, but the sprawling narrative web of Avengers: Doomsday in 2026, which reintroduces Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom. (Yes, you read that right.)
This isn’t a story about box office redemption. It’s a story about building something human in the middle of the multiverse storm.
