How Did The Fantastic Four Get Their Powers in the Comics?
Marvel
With the premiere of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, bringing one of Marvel’s most iconic superhero teams to life (again), one of the main things people were interested in was the foursome’s powers. This new movie centered on the superhero team isn’t an origin story, unlike the previous two. But does it hold true to the comics? How did the Fantastic Four get their powers in the comics in the first place?
The team was introduced in The Fantastic Four #1, published in November 1961. They were the first superhero team created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee, who would also create the Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, and the X-Men, which is why they’re often referred to as Marvel’s First Family. In the comics, the characters gain superpowers during an unauthorized test flight of an experimental spacecraft invented by Reed, during which they’re exposed to cosmic rays.
Every member of the team is affected by the cosmic rays; they’re just affected in different ways. Reed Richards, known as Mister Fantastic, gains the ability to stretch, deform, and reshape his body into any form he desires. Sue Storm, or the Invisible Woman, as the name suggests, can turn herself and others invisible. But that’s not all Sue can do, as she can also generate incredibly powerful force fields. Think so powerful that she’s killed a Celestial.
Johnny Storm, meanwhile, is called the Human Torch because he can engulf himself in flames, project fire, manipulate fire, and also fly. Finally, Ben Grimm aka The Thing, the member of the team who suffers the most obvious transformation. His flesh turned hard, almost like stone. He is also granted superhuman strength and durability.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, aka Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm. The movie officially kicks off Phase Six of the MCU.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps hits theaters Friday, July 24, 2025.