Fantastic Four Reveal in ‘Thunderbolts*’ Post-Credits Scene May Contain Major MCU Twist

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has thrown everything fans thought they knew about the Thunderbolts* post-credits scene into doubt. The MCU team-up is currently playing in theaters, but the big movie on everyone’s mind is The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the long-awaited reboot of Marvel’s first family. First Steps has become one of the most anticipated films of the year, with movie theater chain websites crashing when tickets went on sale. Thunderbolts* provided a nice lead into First Steps through its post-credits scene, teasing the team’s arrival and setting up Avengers: Doomsday. However, it might not be as easy to predict as fans expected, with Feige casting doubt that it really is the Fantastic Four arriving.

Speaking with Empire Magazine (via Comic Book Movie), Feige talked about the Thunderbolts*‘ post-credits scene that teased the arrival of The Fantastic Four in the MCU. The scene ended with the New Avengers looking at a monitor telling them about an interdimensional ship that has a big four logo while Michael Giacchino’s Fantastic Four theme plays. For most fans, it was pretty clear that it meant that the Fantastic Four was arriving in the MCU, but Feige reveals that it might not exactly be their ship.

“Well, the name of their ship is the Excelsior, and there is a Fantastic Four ship entering the MCU in the tag. But I’m not sure they’re the same ship.”

What Does This Mean for ‘First Steps’ and ‘Avengers: Doomsday’?

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Since the post-credits scene for Thunderbolts* was revealed, fans have theorized what it would mean for the MCU. Some expected it to be a hint that The Fantastic Four: First Steps would end with the team losing their world and traveling to the MCU, while others cast doubt that Marvel would spoil the ending of one movie in the post-credits scene of another. It is confirmed that the Thunderbolts* post-credits scene was shot by Joe and Anthony Russo on the set of Avengers: Doomsday, which is the first official footage from the highly anticipated crossover.

Pedro Pascal as Mr. Fantastic in The Fantastic Four First Steps

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Some fans might think Kevin Feige is being cryptic, as the Marvel Studios president is an expert at answering questions without actually answering them, but there is evidence that supports what he is saying. The rocket shown in the Thunderbolts* post-credits scene has four prongs, while the Excelsior rocket shown in The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailers has three. This does imply these are two separate ships. There is a possibility that the Excelsior will be destroyed in Fantastic Four: First Steps, and the team will need to make a new rocket, one that will appear in Avengers: Doomsday. So it might still be the Fantastic Four, but not the same ship.

The rocket seen in the Thunderbolts* post-credits scene may be a life raft, similar to the one Reed Richards created in Secret Wars #1, carrying various survivors from a doomed reality. The Fantastic Four might be inside, but so could the X-Men and maybe Monica Rambeau, following her being stranded in a separate existence in The Marvels. There is also always the chance that Doctor Doom is on the ship, having stolen a piece of technology from his greatest foes to travel the multiverse. This could be how the New Avengers and potentially other MCU heroes fight Doctor Doom for the first time. It sounds like fans will have to wait until at least The Fantastic Four: First Step opens in theaters at the earliest and maybe even until December 2026 when Avengers: Doomsday opens.

Source: Empire Magazine via Comic Book Movie