First Steps Confirmed to Have Been Scrapped Before Release

One of the most important parts of The Fantastic Four: First Steps was crafted by an industry legend, and Marvel Studios scrapped it before release.

During a panel held by Deadline during the recent Sound & Screen: Film event, Giacchino confirmed that the final score for The Fantastic Four: First Steps was the second that he composed for the film. “I actually wrote a whole other score for this film that you probably won’t ever hear. I just remember seeing it for the first time with the music and something didn’t feel right,” Giacchino recalled.

“What was really fun was [director] Matt [Shakman] took that to the set,” Giacchino said of his time working on the film. “It was helpful to them to figure out, oh, that’s the movie we’re making. This is the tone. It’s so rare to do that. I think anyone who’s making movies should hire the composer first and then have them write their suite because then they can all get on the same page on day one.” Giacchino went on to explain when he decided to take a second stab at the score for The Fantastic Four: First Steps. “I had built this out based on one version of the movie. When I watched that music against the new version of the movie, I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is not working for me…’ You just never know. What we do is a best guess. Everyone is taking their best guess at something and you’re not always right.”

The Fantastic Four: First Steps was directed by Matt Shakman from a screenplay by Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan, and Ian Springer. The film introduced the latest silver screen iteration of Marvel’s First Family, with Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach stepping into the roles of Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm, respectively. The Fantastic Four: First Steps made its way into theaters on July 25 and immediately found a footing with critics and fans alike. Over the course of its theatrical run, The Fantastic Four: First Steps grossed more than $521.9 million against a budget of around $200 million, all while garnering near unanimously positive reviews.

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Jack Russell transforms in to a werewolf and battles enemies at the end of Werewolf by Night.Image via Marvel Studios

Back in April, Giacchino responded to questions regarding another turn at the shadowy corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe glimpsed in his 2022 Werewolf by Night special, saying, “I think I would like to do something with the story that we created for television, but that’s got its own thing going and it doesn’t quite slot into what’s happening currently in Jack’s life in the Marvel [comics] world. So there’s a little bit of navigating there.”

After composing the scores for five other MCU features, including the first three Spider-Man films, Doctor Strange, and Thor: Love and Thunder, Giacchino both scored and directed the Werewolf by Night special, which introduced not only Gael García Bernal’s Jack Russell, but Laura Donnelly’s Elsa Bloodstone and the hulking horror with a heart of gold known as Man-Thing. “I would love to do another Werewolf by Night [special] more than anything. I think we’re just waiting for the industry to settle into its new norm, whatever that is at this point, before we figure out what to do there,” Giacchino stated at the time.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is currently available for streaming on Disney+.

Release Date

July 25, 2025

Runtime

115 minutes

Director

Matt Shakman

Pedro Pascal

Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic

Vanessa Kirby

Sue Storm / Invisible Woman