May 30, 2025: Marvel Studios’ highly anticipated The Fantastic Four: First Steps is generating massive buzz ahead of its July 25, 2025 release — and the excitement has only intensified after a recent test screening in Los Angeles. The event reportedly offered a sneak peek at the film’s post-credits scene, and fans are losing their minds over the return of one of Marvel’s most iconic villains: Doctor Doom.
According to a report by Super Hero Hype quoting reliable scooper MyTimeToShineHello, the post-credits scene features Sue Storm (played by Vanessa Kirby) reading to her son Franklin Richards, the child of Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal). In a spine-tingling twist, Sue returns to the room to find Doctor Doom sitting beside Franklin — unmasked, yet his face remains hidden from the audience. His costume is said to be “very comic accurate,” exciting longtime fans of the character.
Adding further intrigue, the scoop confirms that Robert Downey Jr. will portray Doctor Doom in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), though his face isn’t revealed in the teaser. The scene has sparked speculation that Doom’s ominous presence may play a major role in the transition from the Fantastic Four’s retro-futuristic 1960s-style world to the main Earth-616 timeline of the MCU.
The post-credits scene follows the events of Thunderbolts (reportedly titled The New Avengers in its final form), which hinted at the Fantastic Four’s arrival through a distress signal from their spacecraft. Fans originally theorized that First Steps would end with the collapse of the team’s reality. However, the new leak suggests that the Four successfully repel Galactus and remain in their dimension — for now. Doom’s possible abduction of Franklin Richards could become the catalyst for their crossover into the MCU’s central timeline.
Alongside Pascal and Kirby, the new Fantastic Four line-up features Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing. The team will face off against Galactus, portrayed by Ralph Ineson, and the Silver Surfer, played by Julia Garner.
Directed by Matt Shakman, The Fantastic Four: First Steps will officially launch Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.