Welcome to an abbreviated edition of The Sunday Post. I was on the road today, headed for a little family vacation time, but the news doesn’t stop just because of a little rest and relaxation.

I had the chance to see The Fantastic Four: First Steps twice before heading on vacation, including at The National Air & Space Museum’s Lockheed Martin IMAX theater. Please go see this movie, and see it on the largest screen you can find. Director Matt Shakman and the rest of the Marvel Studios creative team have made something special. After that, head over to YouTube to get all of Kyle and Robby’s instant reactions.

One more Fantastic Four plug before a quick trip through the week’s news. Our partner, Homage, has a new line of shirts inspired by Marvel’s First Family. Please consider checking them out, and be sure you use our exclusive link below when making a purchase.

THE WATERCOOLER

THIS WEEK IN THE MCU

• The Fantastic Four: First Steps finished its first weekend with an estimated $218 million at the worldwide box office, a virtual dead heat with the opening weekend of Superman a few weeks earlier. Fantastic Four was a little stronger internationally, while Superman fared slightly better in the domestic territories. First Steps was a hit with both critics (87% Certified Fresh at Rotten Tomatoes) and audiences (93% Verified Hot at RT).

• Ralph Ineson plays Galactus in Fantastic Four, but that is not his first MCU appearance. Check out this fascinating piece in The Hollywood Reporter about how the actor went from a bit part in Guardians of the Galaxy to playing one of Marvel’s most iconic villains.

• Daniel Chin of The Ringer spoke to Fantastic Four comics writers Jonathan Hickman and Ryan North about the secrets to rebooting this iconic Marvel team for the big screen and avoiding the mistakes of past iterations.

• Entertainment Weekly exclusively revealed that the upcoming four-part animated series Eyes of Wakanda is coming sooner than you think. Marvel is dropping the entire series this Friday, August 1st. EW talked to creator Todd Harris about the show and the chaos surrounding the release date changes.

• Actress Jona Xiao (Halt and Catch Fire) took to social media to divulge that she will be portraying a female version of Iron Fist for the show.

BEYOND THE MULTIVERSE

• Without Marvel Studios bringing down the house in Hall H like they usually do, it was a fairly quiet weekend at San Diego Comic-Con. But James Gunn and the cast of Peacemaker did show up to talk about the show and deliver a brand-new trailer.

TRUE BELIEVERS RUMOR OF THE WEEK

• Stop me if you have heard this before, but once again, rumors have started to swirl that Blade could finally start filming in 2026. File this under “I’ll believe it when I am sitting down in a theater to watch it”, but the revelation that Eric Pearson (Thunderbolts*, The Fantastic Four: First Steps) has taken over writing the script is at least a positive sign.

Thanks, as always, for taking the time to stop by our humble little newsletter every week. Stay tuned to Friends From Work on all social platforms and wherever you get your podcasts. Kyle and Robby will be back soon with more Fantastic Four reflections and a breakdown of their trip to San Diego!

-Greg