The Fantastic Four director Matt Shakman has revealed the great lengths he and the creative team went to to perfect Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s The Thing design – and explained why it was so important to get those details right.

During Marvel Studios’ panel at San Diego Comic-Con on July 27, the filmmaker, whose previous credits include Fargo, The Boys, and WandaVision, said that those behind the scenes of the new superhero flick “went out into the desert to find the best rock” to create Ben Grimm’s alter-ego. 

“We want to be true to comics but we also want to be true to life,” he said (per Entertainment Weekly), and the research didn’t stop at boulders, either. “We talked to scientists, we talked to animal experts, we talked to everybody,” Shakman noted, before going on to confirm that the movie will be set in a “retro-future ‘60s”. 

“It’s part what you know from the ‘60s, but part what you’ve never seen before,” he concluded.

Also starring Joseph Quinn, Vanessa Kirby, and Pedro Pascal as Johnny Storm, Sue Storm, and Reed Richards respectively, The Fantastic Four: First Steps releases on July 25, 2025. As it stands, little is known about the plot, but given that Ralph Ineson is playing comics villain Galactus, we can assume he’s who Marvel’s First Family will be facing off against. 

Attendees at SDCC got a brief glimpse at the film, despite it not having started officially filming yet, which boasted scenes of Pascal’s Mister Fantastic “teaching” in a TV show, a flying car, the silhouette of The Thing on a vintage-style dating show, and the titular foursome preparing for a space mission.

While we wait for more information, check out our guide to Marvel Phase 5 and our breakdown of all the upcoming Marvel movies heading our way.