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The Sunday Post: Look Up!
Greg Arnold
July 13, 2025
Hello, friends! Six years ago this month, Kevin Feige stood on the stage in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con and announced that Marvel Studios would begin developing a Fantastic Four film for the first time. Now, we are less than two weeks away from The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Preparations are nearly complete. Phase Six is upon us.
But first, there is one more legacy movie to watch- 2015’s Fantastic Four starring Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Kate Mara, and Jamie Bell. Tomorrow on FFW+, Robby and Kyle will share their impressions of the movie on a new podcast. Then, on Thursday, the guys will have a main feed pod answering listener questions from the FFW Hotline about the new movie.
Now onto…
THE WATERCOOLER
THIS WEEK IN THE MCU
The Fantastic Four: First Steps promotion has kicked into high gear. Every day, new clips and television spots are released. The trailer above, in a retro 60s-style, is my personal favorite.
The social media embargo for First Steps will be lifted on July 22nd at 1 am ET. The full review embargo will be lifted later the same day, at noon ET.
Box office projections for First Steps continue to trend in the right direction. Shawn Robbins of Box Office Theory is currently tracking the opening weekend to earn between $125 million and $155 million. Positive reviews and word-of-mouth could drive those numbers towards the higher end of that range.
Have you watched Ironheart? If not, you are truly missing out on a hidden gem. But don’t take my word for it- listen to Iron Man himself, Robert Downey Jr., rave about the show in conversation with star Dominique Thorne.
Showrunner Dario Scardapane revealed on Instagram that Daredevil: Born Again season 2 has wrapped production in New York City. The show is expected to return early in 2026.
With Daredevil wrapped, the Punisher special presentation is set to begin filming next week in the city, co-written and directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day begins filming August 1st in Glasgow, Scotland, and Tom Holland spoke about how this film would be different than the last Spider-Man film.
“I’m obviously over the moon and so excited. Playing Spider-Man is like hanging out with an old pal, And I think we were really restricted with what we could do in the last movie because of Covid. We shot the entire film on stages. Now, we’re really gonna lean into that old-school filmmaking and shoot in real locations, which is why we’re starting in Glasgow, we’re gonna use the streets of Glasgow for this massive set piece that we’re putting together. So it’s gonna feel like making Spider-Man 1 [Homecoming] again. You know, it’s been such a long time [since] I’ve done it that it’s gonna feel like a breath of fresh air. And I think the fans are gonna be over-the-moon with what we’re putting together.”
BEYOND THE MULTIVERSE
The moment has finally arrived for fans of DC Comics and Superman. James Gunn’s long-awaited Superman is now playing in theaters. Backed by an 82% critic’s score on Rotten Tomatoes and a 93% audience score, the movie brought in an estimated $122 million at the domestic box office and another $95 million elsewhere around the globe. That $217 million total is DC’s best debut since The Batman.
TRUE BELIEVERS RUMOR OF THE WEEK
Photos from the set of Avengers: Doomsday appear to show the movie filming on a Time Variance Authority set.
We know that there will be at least one as-yet-untitled movie from Marvel Studios between Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. I was recently told that the movie in question will be Jake Schreier’s X-Men movie.
Buckle in, folks, because the rest of this month is going to fly by. Make sure to be following Friends From Work on social media, YouTube, and your podcast app of choice. Then join me back here again next week, for the final newsletter before The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
-Greg
