It’s been 90+ degrees 9 of the last 10 days here in the Mid-Atlantic, and on Tuesday, the calendar flips to July. Things are heating up outside, and they are about to heat up even more in movie theaters and at Friends From Work. July might be the biggest movie month in years, kicking off with Jurassic World Rebirth, followed by Superman, and ending the month with The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

But that is not all. July also begins with the final three episodes of Ironheart on Disney+, and Kyle and Robby have already recorded their reactions for the podcast, which will be posted on Tuesday night. There will be a lot to discuss, and I would advise avoiding social media until you’ve had the chance to see every episode. (In case you missed it, I reviewed the entire series for the website. Please check it out.)

FFW+ listeners will want to make sure they did their homework this week, if you haven’t already. Watch Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer in preparation for a new Merry Marvel Watching Society podcast that Robby and Kyle will be tracking soon.

For even more on the crazy month ahead, we head over to…

THE WATERCOOLER

THIS WEEK IN THE MCU

• As promised, Marvel Studios released the final trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps last week. I think it is the best one yet. Less than four weeks to go!

• Nexus Point News exclusively revealed that the Punisher special starring Jon Bernthal will begin shooting in mid-July in New York City. Plans are to wrap shooting in early August.

• Marvel released a new trailer for Ironheart, teasing the final three episodes of the show. As the promo says, this show deserves your attention.

• The final runtime for The Fantastic Four: First Steps was adjusted from 130 to 115 minutes last week. There are rumors that the change is the result of edits that may have removed either the Natasha Lyonne or John Malkovich characters (or both). They’ve been curiously absent from most (or all in Lyonne’s case) of the trailers.

• As if that isn’t enough, Thunderbolts* arrives on digital this week! A special extended look at the desert sequence was released on YouTube to promote the release. As mentioned last week, the movie will be available on 4K steelbook later this month and is likely coming to Disney+ in early August.

• According to the personal website of production designer Will Hughes-Jones, the Vision series is scheduled to wrap filming in July, and he also confirmed that the show will consist of 8 episodes.

BEYOND THE MULTIVERSE

• Two big 2026 movies revealed their first posters this week: Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey starring Tom Holland and Matt Damon, and Project Hail Mary starring Ryan Gosling. Both movies are expected to show teaser trailers in front of Jurassic World Rebirth.

TRUE BELIEVERS RUMOR OF THE WEEK

• The cinematographer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Brett Pawlak, shared some Spider-Man images via his Pinterest account, possibly as a mood board for the movie, which is preparing to film later this summer. Interestingly, the Hulk appears in several of the images, lending support to the Nexus Point News exclusive from earlier this year that Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner will appear in the movie.

Before I close out this week’s Post, a quick shout-out to our two affiliate partners, Organic Priced Books and Homage. Readers and listeners can save on their comic book purchases at OPB using the code “FRIENDSFROMWORK,” and Homage currently has all their apparel marked down 20% for a limited time. Support us and our great partners!

Thanks for reading this week. Stay cool, watch Ironheart, and I hope to see you back here next week.

-Greg