A producer on The Fantastic Four: First Steps has made a bold claim about the team’s leadership—and it’s not Reed Richards wearing the crown. According to producer Grant Curtis, the upcoming Marvel Studios reboot will position Sue Storm as the true center and leader of the iconic superhero team.
In a new interview with Collider, Curtis addressed Marvel’s approach to the character this time around, suggesting a dramatic shift from previous iterations.
The cast of Fantastic Four: First Steps – YouTube, Marvel Entertainment
“If you do go back through the comics, you realize that Sue Storm is arguably the leader of the Fantastic Four, because without Sue Storm, everything falls apart,” Curtis said. He further added that while the film’s aesthetic may nod to past versions, the story and character focus are intended to reflect modern sensibilities. “We had the desire to date aesthetically, but in terms of character and treatment, who should be front and center, it’s like, hey, let’s tell the best story possible.”
Curtis did not directly directly bash earlier Fantastic Four films, such as the 2005 and 2007 entries that starred Jessica Alba, but Collider was quick to do it for him. The outlet framed those past portrayals as products of a “more male-gazing era of filmmaking.” The outlet criticized the original versions of Sue Storm for lacking depth and positioned the new film as a corrective step toward stronger female representation, as though that’s something the modern MCU lacks.
Sue Storm in The Fantastic Four: First Steps – YouTube, Marvel Entertainment
Vanessa Kirby, who plays Sue Storm in First Steps, echoed similar sentiments. Speaking about the balance of portraying Sue as a mother, wife, sister, and superhero, Kirby emphasized avoiding stereotypical portrayals of femininity, framing those traditional elements in a negative light.
“It’s the reality of embracing being pregnant and then carrying a baby throughout without falling into tropes or the archetypes we see in film around it,” Kirby told Collider. “And it’s a daily choice. And even when it came to beginning costumes for things, I was like, ‘don’t give me any like dolly skirts.’”
Silver Surfer from Fantastic Four First Steps (2025); Screenshot
Director Matt Shakman described Sue Storm previously as the emotional and moral compass of the team—someone who complements Reed Richards not just romantically, but ideologically.
“If he is the most scientifically intelligent person, then she is the most emotionally intelligent person on the planet,” Shakman said. “Between the two of them, they’re building an idealistic society.”
Shakman also confirmed that Sue will be the head of the Future Foundation in the movie—a fictional think tank in the comics responsible for global peace initiatives and advanced scientific research. This role positions Sue at the helm of one of the most powerful organizations in the Marvel Universe.
Sue Storm and Reed Richards in The Fantastic Four: First Steps – YouTube, Marvel Entertainment
Kirby recounted seeing outdated gender roles in earlier comics, including one where Reed Richards calms Sue’s “complaining” by buying her a new dress. She said she and co-star Pedro Pascal—who plays Reed—laughed about it, essentially mocking the classic comic roots of these characters.
For her take on Sue, Kirby wanted a different tone.
“What makes me feel truly feminine is allowing in space for vulnerability,” she said. “I didn’t want to make Sue simply a ‘bad boss b****.’” Instead, she hopes the film presents Sue with what she called a “genuine feminine soulfulness.”
Galactus in Fantastic Four: First Steps – YouTube, Marvel Entertainment
Marvel’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps is set to reboot the storied franchise of Marvel’s First Family within the MCU continuity. 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.
While many fans were initially excited at the prospect of seeing Marvel’s first family finally brought into the same universe as the Avengers, some have questioned the creative direction, particularly when it comes to retrofitting long-established roles.
The Baxter Building in Fantastic Four: First Steps – YouTube, Marvel Entertainment
Curtis’s comments are sure to reignite debate among longtime comic book readers and casual audiences alike, especially given the clear push to recenter the franchise around Sue. Whether fans will embrace the shift—or see it as sidelining Reed Richards—remains to be seen when The Fantastic Four: First Steps hits theaters.
How do you feel about Sue Storm being the leader of The Fantastic Four? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
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And here we go.
Why do I think that their version of utopia is a communist utopia where everyone is equal except those who are more equal than others with them on the top with everyone completely dependent on their IQ?
And doesn’t Mister Fantastic take bribes from big concerns to NOT release his technology and is social idiot as much a science savant? While Invisible Woman was always enabler for everyone else to make bad decisions…
Oh, this went from a “maybe” theater, if someone else buys the tickets, to a “sail the high seas” movie but the more I hear the more I lean to “if it is on at 3am and there aren’t any infomercials on.”
Get ready guys, it looks like we’re getting another disaster due to attempts to replace the plot with a “message” and the author’s political fantasies.
Duh. Anybody who saw the trailers knows that this is another feminist M-She-U movie.
This is why you gatekeep. People like Curtis and companies like Disney need to be kept away from our hobbies and interests, otherwise they’ll turn them into their personal vanity projects.
To hell with sue storm played by vanessa kriby. Hope her performance is remembered with the likes of “Ishtar” and “The Human Centipede”.
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