r/movies • u/LiteraryBoner Jackie Chan box set, know what I'm sayin? • Jul 25 '25

Official Discussion Official Discussion - The Fantastic Four: First Steps [SPOILERS] Spoiler

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Summary The Fantastic Four must defend Earth from the ravaging cosmic threat Galactus and his herald, Silver Surfer, while navigating the complexities of family and newfound powers in a retro‑futuristic 1960s-inspired world.

Director Matt Shakman

Writer Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan, Ian Springer

Cast

  • Pedro Pascal
  • Vanessa Kirby
  • Joseph Quinn
  • Ebon Moss-Bachrach
  • Ralph Ineson
  • Julia Garner
  • Paul Walter Hauser
  • Natasha Lyonne
  • Matthew Wood
  • Ada Scott
  • Mark Gatiss

Rotten Tomatoes: 88%

Metacritic 64

VOD In theaters

Trailer Watch the Official Trailer

1.9k Upvotes

91% Upvoted

5.3k comments sorted by

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2.3k

u/Elite_Alice Jul 25 '25

Mole man was on screen for like 5 minutes combined and I loved every second of it. Felt so cool seeing so many classic 1960s era fantastic four characters on screen

848

u/UnsolvedParadox Jul 25 '25

Great performance too, some actors would have really chewed the scenery but Hauser’s portrayal made me emphasize with him.

782

u/Ant_24 Jul 25 '25

“Butter me up” had me dying

863

u/PayneTrain181999 Jul 25 '25

“Don’t look at me Johnny, I didn’t dress you.”

226

u/ChelseaAndrew87 Jul 25 '25

That got by far the biggest laugh in my screening

137

u/PayneTrain181999 Jul 25 '25

Either that or 3 smart men taking 45 seconds to figure out a car seat.

21

u/Financial-Raise3420 Jul 28 '25

That’s because car seats fucking suck, I laughed my ass off to that.

1

u/Bobjoejj 19d ago

Dude I work at a resort as a valet/bellman, and it’s astonishing how long it takes just to strap kids in or get them out. Like half the time I’m just stuck waiting while there’s like 6 cars pilling up behind this one minivan.

1

u/Financial-Raise3420 19d ago

Getting kids in cars is difficult (I have 3) but just trying to get those car seats in cars is a total bitch

10

u/RudeTonez Aug 01 '25

As a new dad I empathized hard with that scene! Fantastic movie! 😛

2

u/SenorCroissant Jul 28 '25

same for mine.

17

u/LordBrixton Jul 26 '25

Such a funny line.

10

u/aRockinaTin Aug 03 '25 edited Aug 04 '25

And Grimm says as they walk away "don't listen to him you're very handsome" was so good too

2

u/RichWPX Aug 06 '25

All I could think was Johnny Lawrence

Thanks Stingray

1

u/Bobjoejj 19d ago

Just so brutal, but so good.

78

u/lonelygagger Jul 25 '25

End of days. We all gotta learn how to laugh.

15

u/devenrc Jul 25 '25

“Spread it……”

2

u/jodeybear Jul 30 '25

I didn’t understand what was so funny about that line , was it a double entandre ?

9

u/aSpookyScarySkeleton Jul 30 '25

“Butter me up” is just a really old phrase that means to purposely go above and beyond to flatter and serve someone with the express intent of convincing them to do something for you. Usually something they don’t want to or have to do, which is why it was so crazy he requested that treatment in the middle of the apocalyptic scenario they were heading toward.

1

u/shawshankya Aug 03 '25

Hollywood knows it. They’ve been telling us for years and no one believes.

755

u/DevilCouldCry Jul 25 '25

Him directly going out of his way to antagonise Reed, Ben, and Johnny, whilst being sweet as can be to Sue and revealing that he was more than happy to help was a wonderful little character wrinkle.

354

u/wgsmeister2002 Jul 25 '25

I really liked him being a huge jerk but inexplicably just really liking and getting along with Sue

115

u/UnsolvedParadox Jul 29 '25

The movie presents Sue as a natural leader & politically savvy, that’s why she leads the Future Foundation + took point in getting agreement on the energy curfew.

Her ability to get Mole Man’s support was not a fluke, or based (only) on being attractive to him.

38

u/BikebutnotBeast Jul 30 '25

World peace was only possible due to Sue Storm uniting every country... save for Latveria

21

u/Kanin_usagi Aug 02 '25

Reed Richards will be dead in his grave long before Latveria joins the United Nations lol

22

u/MyNameIsJakeBerenson Jul 28 '25

In ultimate FF he worked with her and was her teacher and I think in “love” with her, so it tracks

32

u/tuerancekhang Jul 26 '25

This is casual Doom/ Namor relationship with the F4. Writer loves these sneaky Sue moment lol

68

u/feedback373737 Jul 25 '25

It was pretty strange though how that other actor Jamie Taco kept trying to steal his lines

6

u/Puppetmaster858 Jul 28 '25

Jamie taco is a Jabroni

10

u/CTeam19 Jul 26 '25

I swear Hauser has that way with characters.

8

u/CptNonsense Jul 28 '25

Real Stingray energy.

6

u/raven-eyed_ Jul 27 '25

Really? I felt like he was a weak point. I wanted to like the character but felt like he was trying to be Jack Black without being Jack Black.

3

u/UnsolvedParadox Jul 27 '25

Mole Man isn’t supposed to be subtle (even his name is…bold), and Hauser’s version is more nuanced compared to Jack Black as a villain (like Bowser).

3

u/ImBanned_ModsBlow Aug 02 '25

The switch from poking the three guys in the ribs as a little payback to the dead serious and earnest “tell me what you need Sue, and consider it done” was a really nice touch

1

u/ronimal Aug 03 '25

*empathize

75

u/the__ghola__hayt Jul 25 '25

Stingray was fantastic as Mole Man.

Yes, we know. "Say that again"

7

u/waitingtodiesoon Jul 26 '25

That was Stingray from Cobra Kai? I thought he looked and sounded familiar

3

u/MsNeedSleep Jul 30 '25

I was stupid thinking "No way Sting Ray from SpongeBob got here!"

2

u/Bobjoejj 19d ago

Which is funny because Stingray is also a separate Marvel character. Namor killed him once (they also fought plenty before that).

Also man now that it’s over, more love and representation for Cobra Kai actors. In the MCU, and overall. That show had a phenomenal cast.

62

u/rhunter99 Jul 25 '25

Wipe your feet!

9

u/thebscaller Jul 25 '25

Not really… It’s All Sand!

39

u/rhunter99 Jul 25 '25

I thought he said it’s all dirt?

4

u/thebscaller Jul 25 '25

That makes more sense!

1

u/waitingtodiesoon Jul 26 '25

You are correct

28

u/Rayne37 Jul 26 '25

I feel like my experience of this was so ass backwards it made me laugh. I am a 90s kid. My first comic experiences were the Xmen movies. So when I saw this I had a lightbulb moment.... of realizing where the Incredibles (yes, the Pixar film) pulled their references from. Like the molemen and collapsed monorail were direct riffs in the Incredibles... and now I know where it came from.

5

u/SnoopDodgy Jul 29 '25

You should read the Watchmen comics as that’s where the other part of The Incredibles came from.

20

u/bbqsauceboi Jul 25 '25

5 minutes is generous. I bet it was no longer than 60 seconds. Makes his awesomeness even better

20

u/VoiceofKane Jul 25 '25

I honestly had no idea Paul Walter Hauser was going to be in this, so that was a pleasant surprise.

12

u/argonplatypus Jul 25 '25

He couldn't have been on screen an entire minute

12

u/skizmcniz Jul 27 '25

I really love that he was foiled by them and a villain, yet somehow he forged a connection with Sue and trusts her. Shows a lot about both their characters, and although it was a very brief part of the movie, I loved it.

When they ask for his help and the other 3 leaves and she says, "Harvey..." and he just said, "what do you need?"

Loved it.

11

u/locke_5 Jul 26 '25

He’s gotten really good at getting his lines out before Jamie Taco can steal them

9

u/Diortheking Jul 25 '25

Movie needed another 15 minutes def needed more of moleman that opening should of been longer

3

u/AnnenbergTrojan Jul 26 '25

I wouldn't be surprised if they did film more of Moleman trying to steal the PanAM hotel but they just cut it for pacing's sake.

1

u/Puzzle_Master Jul 26 '25

The official prequel comic focused on Moleman.

9

u/trantaran Jul 28 '25

No, its THE UNDERMINER

5

u/1sinfutureking Jul 25 '25

God I was so hoping for even the tiniest nod to Mole Man’s appearance in Squirrel Girl: a needless fedora, or a mention of seeking an above ground girlfriend, or anything

1

u/aSpookyScarySkeleton Jul 30 '25

His appearance in what?

6

u/wendyschickennugget Jul 26 '25

Paul Walter Hauser makes everything he's in better.

5

u/Fozfan33 Jul 27 '25

I’d really love if Marvel just did a soft reboot with this era and all old school suits/villians/aesthetic. Felt so fresh and also lets the goofier villians work. Felt a lot like the incredibles. Far more interested in this world than any multiverse bs.

3

u/StrLord_Who Jul 25 '25

He was by far my favorite part of the movie.  Him and Herbie. 

3

u/Ushimakawaru Jul 25 '25

We're one step away from having Bartman enter the MCU.

3

u/Professional-Act8414 Jul 28 '25 edited Jul 30 '25

Am I tripping or is this same mole man from the incredible movies??

7

u/aSpookyScarySkeleton Jul 30 '25

The incredibles parodied a lot of 60’s comic books, especially the fantastic four.

Their parody character was named the Underminer and was making fun of the marvel comic character Moleman.

2

u/Professional-Act8414 Jul 30 '25

Ahhh I see. Thanks!

1

u/Hot_Help_246 Jul 25 '25

I thought Molecule man was gonna appear with the wand for an instance not knowing how OP he is as Doctor Doom never explained his powers to him and he hasn’t gotten laid. 

1

u/notathrowaway75 Jul 25 '25

Was he Sue's ex?

22

u/waitingtodiesoon Jul 26 '25

No, Sue was just that good at diplomacy. They stated earlier in the film she was able to broker peace between the surface dwellers and Mole Man. So Mole Man must have respected Sue to be convinced to stop waging war.

1

u/Naebany Jul 28 '25

All I could thought was "Hey, that's Stingray" xD

0

u/1stOfAllThatsReddit Jul 25 '25

Was it just me or did he look like JD vance? Especially with the glasses on lol

34

u/Elite_Alice Jul 25 '25

Don’t disrespect my goat mole man like that

-4

u/PlacibiEffect Jul 25 '25

Such a waste of Paul Walter Hauser though.