The Fantastic Four: First Steps post credits scenes explained

If you thought The Fantastic Four: First Steps was just about reboots and retro vibes, think again. With their First Family, Marvel is cracking open a cosmic door to something far bigger. With two very different but equally loaded post-credits scenes, the film plants the seeds for a multiversal saga that spirals straight into Avengers: Doomsday.

Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers for The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Reader discretion is advised.

Between a haunting encounter involving Franklin Richards and a silent, cloaked figure, and a nostalgic animated homage that doubles as a universe teaser, Marvel is doing what it does best, sneaking major game-changers into seconds-long scenes. These are more than just easter eggs. They’re narrative launchpads. And if you’ve been keeping tabs on Doom’s rumored rise, Franklin’s omega-level future, or the looming threat of multiversal collapse, you’ll want to read between every frame.

So, what do these moments really mean? How do they set the stage for Avengers: Doomsday? And why is a toddler suddenly the most dangerous being in the MCU? Let’s break it down.

The post-credits scene of The Fantastic Four: First Steps explained

The first post-credits scene of The Fantastic Four: First Steps jumps ahead four years, and everything seems cozy in the Baxter Building, at least at first. Sue Storm is reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar to little Franklin, who’s now four and already showing signs of being not your average toddler. Their robot buddy H.E.R.B.I.E. tries to spice things up with a suggestion: Darwin’s Origin of Species. Sue denies and heads to another room to find something a bit more kid-friendly.

But when she returns, we have an intruder here.

Franklin is no longer alone. Kneeling in front of him is a cloaked figure, silent, eerie, and holding Doctor Doom’s silver mask like it’s some kind of inheritance. The camera never shows his face, but the implication is loud: Doom has arrived. And he’s not here to fight, he’s here for Franklin. The boy’s omega-level powers clearly have the attention of the most dangerous mind in the multiverse. Oh, and yes, it’s Robert Downey Jr. under that cloak. Let that sink in.

Director Matt Shakman’s staying tight-lipped about Franklin’s future in Avengers: Doomsday, but the setup here says it all: this kid is going to be a problem, or a solution, or both. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the director mentioned that the post-credits scene for The Fantastic Four: First Steps was written by the Russo Brothers and added,

"That's one of the things that other movies have done — they've often used Doctor Doom. Doctor Doom is an amazing character, and he's coming, as we all know. For us, it felt like, let's start where you can focus on these four amazing characters — Galactus is awesome too, but he's a giant cosmic threat, he's unknowable — and save Doom for a little later."

The second post-credits scene for The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a complete tonal flip: a vintage-style animated intro to a fictional Fantastic Four cartoon. It has everything: Red Ghost, Puppet Master, Diablo, and all the 60s camp you could ask for. The screen fades to a quote from Jack Kirby: “If you look at my characters, you will find me...” And then a sweet detail, Earth-828, the movie’s main setting, is a nod to Kirby’s birthday: August 28.

How the post-credits scene for The Fantastic Four: First Steps sets up Avengers: Doomsday

Marvel Studios Panel At SDCC - Source: Getty

Marvel’s Phase Six is kicking into gear, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps doesn’t just stop at reimagining the First Family; it quietly primes the entire MCU for a cosmic reckoning. The mid‑credits moment may only last seconds, but it stakes out Franklin Richards and Doctor Doom as the twin centers of the coming multiversal maelstrom.

Franklin is clearly not an afterthought in the MCU. The Fantastic Four: First Steps establishes him early as a cosmic force, capable of resurrecting his mother with raw Power Cosmic, which caught Galactus’s attention when he attempted to enlist the child in place of Earth itself. That power is exactly what Doom needs. In the credits, the silent exchange, a cloaked figure offering his mask to Franklin, signals recruitment or manipulation, not simple villainy.

Why is this setup crucial? Because Avengers: Doomsday appears to draw heavily from Jonathan Hickman’s Avengers/Secret Wars era. In those arcs, Doom wields ultimate power on Battleworld, constructed from merged universes, and Franklin acts as the source or switch for reality itself. The MCU seems to be adapting that structure. Doom likely sees Franklin’s abilities as the key to crafting, or conquering, a multiverse.

Production rumors and a recent plot leak suggest the Fantastic Four eventually cross from Earth‑828 into Earth‑616, where Doom has taken Franklin. The team may initially clash with the Avengers before uniting for a showdown over the child amidst multiversal incursions. Another theory posits that Reed Richards traced Doom’s dimensional signature, spurring a desperate interdimensional pursuit that ends at Earth‑616, classic Reed vs Doom tension with cosmic stakes.

Indeed, fan speculation from Reddit envisions Reed’s family fleeing Earth‑828 when it’s destroyed or afflicted by incursions, with Doom initially elated to see them, then enraged when he realizes they aren’t his allies but refugees from 616. That betrayal fuels his multiversal agenda, turning Franklin into a symbolic centerpiece of this collision.

The credits scene also fills narrative leverage. It replaces an expected cameo of the Fantastic Four arriving on 616, as teased by the Russo Brothers' Thunderbolts post-credits scene, with a more subtle join‑up through mystery and objective. That ambiguity builds anticipation: will the Fantastic Four be allies, suspects, or secret wildcards in the Doomsday conflict?

Marvel’s desire to reposition Doom, cast RDJ, and shift from Kang to Doom as the Phase Six villain underscores the gravity of Franklin’s introduction. Doom’s interest in him gives concrete reason for crossover stakes and armies of heroes: he’s not just facing Avengers, he’s gunning for a Godchild who could reshape reality, and by extension, the Avengers’ world.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is now available in theaters.