As the filmmaker’s three-year journey wound down on the project, he realized a key moment was missing, and managed to shoot it within a few months of the film's opening.

First Steps is coming in lighter than projections in its first box office weekend with $117.6 million. Still records were broken.

"First Steps" promises to push the MCU out of its comfort zone, but the movie quickly retreats into a tired version of the same old story.

FANTASTIC FOUR: THE FIRST STEPS brings the team to us in a new and refreshing way. Matt Shakman's vision of their NYC is gorgeous and intoxicating and Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach are perfect. It's about family!!!! 💙 pic.twitter.com/ISdfduL6Su

Through news headlines, mug shots, and reels, we see flashes of classic Fantastic Four comic book villains like Red Ghost (John Malkovich) and his team of Super-Apes (who once played a larger role in the film before being cut for time), Mad Thinker, and Puppet Master.

First Steps put the spotlight on Marvel's First Family and H.E.R.B.I.E., while filmmaker Matt Shakman addresses the team's absence from Earth-616.

Matt Shakman went from dark humor in 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia' to bright superheroes in 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps,' and it worked!

The Fantastic Four: First Steps director Matt Shakman has reiterated that the movie is a standalone story that doesn't require any homework on Marvel fans' part.

First Steps to bring you an in-depth breakdown of all the Marvel Studios movie's biggest Easter Eggs, comic book references, and cameos. Check it