Marvel is achieving feats once considered impossible. The studio first reunited the Russo brothers and Robert Downey, Jr., followed by the returns of Steve Rogers and Thor. Furthermore, it has released not one or two, but four teasers for the film, despite it being a year away from release.
These four previews were presumably meant to run alongside screenings of Avatar: Fire and Ash to drive weekly ticket sales. In practice, they primarily fueled anticipation for the trailers’ eventual online release. The hype remains undiminished, however. Now, Marvel unveils its final reveal: a long-awaited encounter with deep roots in comic book history. Watch the teaser below:
The footage features Shuri, the Black Panther, and M’Baku, the King of Wakanda, traversing a vast desert. “I’ve lost everyone that matters to me,” Shuri narrates. “The king has his duties to prepare our people for the afterlife. I have mine.” The teaser cuts to Namor and the Talonkanil observing the desert, followed by King M’Baku meeting Ben Grimm. This finally integrates the Fantastic Four into the MCU, after hints in The Fantastic Four: First Steps and the Thunderbolts post-credits scene.
While this alliance may appear unexpected—highlighted by Ben mentioning his Lower East Side street (the iconic Yancy Street from Marvel comics)—the connection between Black Panther and the Fantastic Four is historically significant. Black Panther first appeared in Fantastic Four #52, released in April 1966.
What does this imply for Avengers: Doomsday? Firstly, it confirms the safe arrival of Marvel’s First Family on Earth. It also suggests a potential team-up between these two factions of the MCU. Given the enormous ensemble, not every character will interact directly, so uniting the Wakandans with the Fantastic Four could create a compelling subplot about heroes unfamiliar with this version of Earth.
If you feel compelled to analyze this brief clip, that’s the point. The Russo Brothers shared the teaser with an enigmatic message urging exactly that. “What you’ve been watching for the last four weeks… are not teasers. Or trailers,” the post states. “They are stories. They are clues…Pay attention.”
These four teasers, or “stories,” have been brief and minimal, yet they supposedly contain a deeper significance we have yet to decipher. We have under a year to solve the puzzle.