She's late—but not to the mission.
That's the kicker in Marvel Studios' The Fantastic Four: First Steps teaser, where Johnny Storm scolds his sister for being late. Sue panics. Not because she's missing dinner—but because, well, she thinks he knows. That one throwaway moment? It's a cinematic mic drop.
Because for the first time in its 30+ film canon, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is putting a pregnant superhero front and center.
A Quiet Revolution in a Loud Franchise
Forget explosions and galactic threats for a second—Vanessa Kirby's Sue Storm is breaking Marvel's most persistent pattern: the sterilized, unmothered woman hero. Sure, Wanda Maximoff technically had kids, but WandaVision was a Disney+ detour, not a theatrical release. And those kids? Magically conjured, bound to disappear like your last five unread texts.
This? This is different. This is a woman whose power isn't undermined by motherhood. It's woven into it.
The MCU's Historical Motherhood Problem
Let's call it what it is: the MCU has a weird fear of fertility. Black Widow literally tells Bruce Banner she can't have kids—and that's presented as a reason she's a “monster.” Carol Danvers? No mention of a personal life. Gamora? Sliced before we could even imagine her at a parent-teacher conference.
By contrast, male heroes get to be dads and gods. Tony Stark builds a suit and a family. Hawkeye plays house in a farmhouse. Even Ant-Man gets dad jokes and actual daughters.
But women? Until now, they got trauma, not toddlers.
Kirby's Sue Storm Is a Game-Changer—But Will Marvel Commit?
There's a real-world precedent for what this kind of representation can do. When Jessica Drew's pregnancy was central in Spider-Woman's 2015 comic arc, fans (and critics) praised it as a gutsy take. That risk carried over into Sony's Across the Spider-Verse, with a visibly pregnant Jess Drew fighting crime on a motorcycle.
But that's animation. This is a $200 million tentpole. And Marvel's banking on Kirby to carry more than just a baby.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: superheroes have long been expected to be either sexy or maternal. Never both. First Steps is about to challenge that binary.
Why Now—and Why Sue?
Historically, Sue Storm's pregnancy in the comics wasn't just a soap-opera plot twist—it was interstellar drama. The 1968 Fantastic Four Annual #5 saw the team entering the Negative Zone just to help her deliver. Her firstborn, Franklin, became a god-tier mutant whose powers rivaled reality itself. Valeria came later, her birth complicated enough to require Doctor Doom's help. (And yes, she's named by him. Awkward.)
So if Marvel plays this card right, this isn't just a baby bump—it's a setup. For mutantkind. For cosmic powers. For Secret Wars.
Or, it could just be a clever way to humanize Sue. Make her relatable. Ground her superpowers in something messy, vulnerable, and deeply real.
Either way, it's history.
Would you risk universal annihilation with a baby on board?
Kirby's Sue Storm is about to. And maybe, just maybe, it's the most powerful thing she's ever done.
