1 Year Later, I'm Terrified To See How The MCU Will Handle Its Best Kang Replacement

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is set to release later this year, and I am both excited and terrified about the incredible Kang-replacement villain that will be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe in that film. With the new film set to feature a number of Marvel debuts, the MCU's iteration of Marvel's First Family will have to do a great deal of work to live up to the hype. One of the things I am most excited for in the film is the reveal of one of the most terrifying villains in all of Marvel Comics.

Getting the Fantastic Four characters right is perhaps the most important thing that the upcoming film has to do. Following two iterations of the heroes on film with varied levels of success, audiences eagerly anticipate Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and The Thing entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, it is the wide array of incredible villains, including Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom himself, that make for perhaps the most exciting component of this film. Another villain in particular is eagerly anticipated.

Galactus Is Arguably Still The MCU's Best Kang Replacement

Galactus Is A Terrifying Multiversal Threat

Despite Doctor Doom now being set up to be the main villain of Avengers: Doomsday, it is actually Galactus who seems primed to fulfill the role that Kang once was planned for in the MCU. Like Kang, Galactus is a threat from the multiverse with incredible power and a scale that will raise the stakes of the MCU stories being told. Played by the terrifying and compelling Ralph Ineson, the character is primed to be an incredible and terrifying threat to the MCU.

Replacing Kang in the universe feels like a difficult task after everything seemed primed to circle around his story, leading to many assuming Kang will be recast. However, instead, it seems to me that Marvel is filling in the holes that the absence of Kang leaves with multiple other characters, including Doctor Doom and Galactus. With Galactus set to potentially destroy worlds or even universes, the scale of his stories can grow enormous, and I am so excited to see how he is pulled off in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie.

Fantastic Four: First Steps Sets Up A Theoretically Perfect Introduction For Galactus

The Film's Multiversal Setting Will Allow Galactus' Power To Be Shown

One of the most important factors of the upcoming Fantastic Four is that it appears to be set in a different world. With this in mind, the film could potentially be a perfect place to introduce Galactus. One of the issues with telling stories about Galactus in a single universe is that the villain cannot possibly win without destroying everyone and everything. This downplays the character as a threat, and makes his world-eating powers seem significantly less terrifying.

This is not an issue for First Steps. The new film will introduce a new universe with a plethora of new characters, and there is no guarantee that any of them will make it out alive. It's expected that Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm and Ben Grimm will survive, if only because Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige confirmed they'll appear in Avengers: Doomsday, but the rest of their universe could be in peril.

In fact, it seems likely that the universe the Fantastic Four live in will actually be destroyed by Galactus by the end of the film. This will help to establish the villain as a genuine cosmic threat with enormous repercussions in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole. It also works to set up the Fantastic Four to join the main MCU universe so that they can participate in the big battle against RDJ's Doctor Doom in Doomsday.

Galactus' Live-Action History Makes Me So Scared To See The MCU's Take On The Character

The Villain's Only Live-Action Appearance Did Not Seem To Understand Him

The only big screen appearance of Galactus was 17 years ago in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. That film made a fundamental choice for the character of Galactus that was and still is extremely controversial, by taking away his humanoid shape, including his incredible purple armor. Rather than depicting Galactus in his comic-accurate form, the film transformed him into a world-eating cloud that would wreak destruction across the entire planet.

I remember how disappointed I was with how Galactus was depicted when I went to see this film. Turning Galactus into a cloud makes sense in telling an accessible, disaster-themed comic book movie for general audiences, but it felt disrespectful to the source material. Galactus is clearly a difficult character to adapt, and I would be lying if I didn't admit that I have some trepidation following Rise of the Silver Surfer for the MCU to get the character right.

Why The MCU's Galactus Looks Set To Be Different

The MCU Has Shown Great Care For Source Material

I have so much hope for Galactus to fix the MCU's villain problem and be something truly incredible. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has shown great affection for their source material, and has actually had so many comic-accurate costumes and designs throughout the years. In fact, they've even taken previously adapted characters and given them more comics-accurate suits or designs, most recently with Hugh Jackman's Wolverine finally donning his yellow and blue costume and helmet.

In terms of Fantastic Four: First Steps, Marvel has already teased Galactus during some SDCC exclusive footage, and the character's design appears to be accurate to the source material. Based on descriptions from the event, Galactus will have a massive human form, and will wear the purple helmet he's often depicted wearing in the comics. Following this, there is reason to be hopeful Marvel will get Galactus right.

Not everything in the MCU has been exactly as it was in the comics. Spider-Man's story has been changed significantly, and the absence of mutants until recently has reshaped many comic book stories for the screen, including Captain America: Civil War. However, what they always seem to get right is the characters themselves and how they feel and look. Following this, there is great reason to be hopeful for how Galactus is portrayed in the upcoming film.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried about Galactus’ introduction in the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, although I am also very hopeful. The Marvel Cinematic Universe isn't perfect, but it also rarely lets me down with its characterizations. I am excited to see Galactus debut in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and I am curious to see not just how the character is handled in that film, but what kind of impact he is set to make on the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole.

Upcoming MCU Movies

• 

  Release Date February 14, 2025

• 

• 

  Release Date July 25, 2025

• 

• 

  Release Date July 24, 2026

•