Just when most fans thought that The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer could not surprise them any further, they noticed a peculiar detail: The Thing seemingly has a beard in the trailer. Yes, the famed superhero has a rocky beard, and it hints at something bigger than just the ability to grow hair.
How does The Thing have a beard, but no hair on his head in Fantastic Four?
Though a beard on The Thing may look and sound absolutely ridiculous, it is actually an element from the comics. Many fans reacted to the detail spotted in the trailer, but the film seems to have adapted it from the source material, where The Thing has sported a beard before.
What makes this more fascinating is the context. With this image in the trailer, it becomes clear that The Thing can grow a beard. But in the comics, this subplot is connected to time travel. The Thing appears with a beard when Reed Richards and his time-traveling father, Nathaniel Richards, travel into the future to learn about Ben’s lifespan and find him alive centuries later.
This detail could mean that the movie has also integrated a time-travel plot, with a future version of Ben appearing. However, there could be other explanations too.
For one, The Fantastic Four: First Steps might simply give Ben the ability to grow a beard. In that case, growing the stubble is not the issue—shaving it would be. Perhaps Reed Richards has developed a special tool to help Ben manage his beard.
Another possibility is that Ben can grow his beard at will. In that case, he may just be changing up his look in a particular scene. This could also explain why he has no hair on his head.
There could be many reasons why Ben has a beard in the trailer, but some are more intriguing than others. With Marvel already exploring the ideas of the multiverse and time travel, this small detail might be hinting at something huge.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps will release on July 25, 2025, in theatres across the world.
