First Steps DIrector Matt Shakman Addresses How Sue Storm & Reed Richards’ Relationship “Creates Their Strength”

July 20, 2025

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A week out from The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ release, its director, Matt Shakman, opened up about the important dynamic between Pedro Pascal’s Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic and Vanessa Kirby’s Sue Storm/Invisible Woman. Compared with other Marvel teams, the Fantastic Four is more tightly-knit, acting like a family of sorts with Reed as the leader and Sue as the first mate.

With the threat of Galactus looming, the couple must navigate being superheroes and becoming parents for the first time under immense stress. In an interview with GamesRadar+, Shakman explained how the two “really complete each other.” He stated:

He’s the smartest person in the universe, but I often say Reed Richards is great for all mankind, and struggles with individual men. Sue, in some ways, is the most emotionally intelligent person in the world, and so she’s able to, I think, bring the everyday to his life, and he’s able to bring the universe to hers. It’s a little bit like Kirk and Spock in Star Trek in some way, right? The heart and mind coming together, completing each other.

According to Shakman, this relationship is the cornerstone of the entire group’s dynamic. He said: “It’s their unity that creates their strength. You know, it’s true for all four of them, and it’s definitely true for them as a couple.“

Shakman’s comparison of Sue Storm and Reed Richards with Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock is compelling in that it fits. While the Star Trek duo were not a couple, they too led a team together. Spock was the serious, scientific second-in-command, while Kirk was the headstrong leader. Interestingly, this portrays Sue as the leader of the Fantastic Four.

The director also discussed Reed’s struggle in the film: “Reed is always locked in his lab trying to solve everything. He’s five minutes away from destroying the world or saving it at any moment, and I love the idea of taking that mindset of solving everything and applying it to having a child, which is a mystery that you cannot solve. “

Exclusive: The Fantastic Four: First Steps actor whose MCU character is still a mystery addresses her Marvel role and praises the movie.

Shakman stated that “love is a mystery that you cannot write an equation for.” According to him, “Reed loves his wife, but she’s the one thing he can never solve, right?” This further adds to the similarities between Spock and Mister Fantastic by highlighting the issues that both have when connecting with those they care about.

Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal) and Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) gazing into each other's eyes, in love in The Fantastic Four: First Steps

Sue and Reed are one of the most unique and iconic comic book couples, so the director’s comments on their dynamic are a good sign that he knows what he’s doing. Between Shakman’s understanding of the characters and the film’s glowing first reviews, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is shaping up as a worthy introduction of Marvel’s First Family into the MCU.