Marvel’s first family is back for another launch, this time across the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe. The official trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps dropped on Thursday, boasting a star-studded cast of Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Susan Storm, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm, and Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm leading the film. The film hits theatres on July 25.

Aware of its audience, the trailer spares us the details, only skimming what you know if you’ve watched the former renditions of the sub-franchise. Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny take off into space with high prospects, only to return as Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, The Thing, and Human Torch. We get it, the MCU gets it. We’ve seen this film several times before, so the trailer cuts right to what’s important – why this story is worth telling again.

In the retro-futuristic world of the 1960s, Matt Shakman’s heroes are long past dealing with the physical and mental strain of their superhuman abilities. Instead, we have Ben lifting cars to impress kids, Reed and Sue gearing up for a superbaby, and Johnny being… well, Johnny – elated as ever. In this utopian world, the MCU takes a turn away from its consistent modern approach to the multiverse in favour of bringing an abundance of vintage, a splash of colour, and the usual infusion of technology.

So, what’s the catch? If you haven’t guessed it already, it’s intergalactic supervillains. Even original takes must stay loyal to their roots, at least in some way. Unlike Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), the upcoming film opts not to introduce an MCU version of Norrin Radd, focusing instead on Shalla-Bal, the female Silver Surfer.

We also see our superheroes flexing their trained abilities, though fans are particularly gushing over Pascal finally stretching his limbs in true Mister Fantastic fashion.

Additionally, the trailer promises a refreshing crackdown of the utopian world that this universe’s Fantastic Four have seemingly built. For the first time, the great scientist Reed Richards shows insecurity in his ability to handle a cosmic problem. Viewers believe that Doctor Doom, whose absence in this iteration is deeply felt, is laughing somewhere in the distance.

It all leads to Doom

Now with Avengers: Doomsday also on the way, we might see the evil scientist played by MCU veteran Robert Downey Jr sooner than we think. Although the Iron Man actor isn’t starring in First Steps, a mid-credit or post-credit cameo might be on the cards.

Last month, Marvel Studios dropped the lineup for Avengers: Doomsday by showing the chairs of all involved actors, which included the Fantastic Four quartet. At the end of the video was RDJ, who made a silent appearance to show who’ll be the boss of the next Avengers film – perhaps, the second time around.

In an interview with Screen Rant, former Doctor Doom portrayer Julian McMahon reflected on RDJ carrying on the character’s legacy. “It’s Robert, you know what I mean? What are you going to say? His body of work speaks for itself. He’s a super talented guy,” McMahon said.

He added that his crew from the 2005 film were navigating a tricky realm of possibilities, which has become easier for superhero films to do now. “If you’ve got Robert Downey Jr, who’s one of the great creatives of the last however many years we’ve been watching him for, mixed with the elements of how we can make movies these days? I think it’s going to be pretty extraordinary.”