Summary
Marvel’s First Family is finally coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With Matt Shakman’sThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsreleasing in 2025, the fan-favorite team is making its proper debut. Alongside the titular quartet,The Fantastic Four: First Stepsboasts an all-star cast that includes villainous appearances from Galactus, the Silver Surfer, and potentially Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom.
Although John Krasinski played a Multiverse version of Reed Richard/Mister Fantastic duringDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Pedro Pascal is stepping up as the MCU’s main version. Also joining the ensemble are Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as theInvisible Woman, the Human Torch, and the Thing. In the movie, they’re set to go up against Ralph Ineson’s Galactus and Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer.
Who is Marvel Comics’ Shalla-Bal?
Since the Silver Surfer is typically portrayed as male in the comics, cartoons, and movies, there’s been a vocal minority protesting the “woke” decision to gender-flip the character. Some aren’t aware that the female Silver Surfer is a character pulled directly from the pages of Marvel Comics. Much like Carol Danvers and Jane Foster becoming Captain Marvel and Thor,Shalla-Bal once became the Silver Surfer.
Originally, a young astronomer calledNorrin Radd was known as the Silver Surfer. Introduced in 1966’sFantastic Four#48, Radd saved his planet Zenn-La from being devoured by Galactus. In return for being Galactus’ herald, Radd was given some of the villain’s cosmic power, as well as his signature surfboard that lets him travel faster than the speed of light. The original Silver Surfer was so popular, he became a guest character in furtherFantastic Fouradventures and led his own comic series.
Known as the immortal Empress of Zenn-La, Shalla-Bal was introduced as Radd’s lover in 1968’sThe Silver Surfer#1. A convoluted story revealed that Shalla-Bal had her consciousness replaced by Mephisto, with the latter marrying her as a Latverian peasant girl and forcing the Silver Surfer (Radd) to fight the Fantastic Four.Ozark’s Julia Garner is playing Shalla-BalinFirst Steps, but in typical MCU style, her origin story is likely getting a revamp.
The synopsis forFirst Stepsteases Shalla-Bal’s role as Galactus’ herald, with the description reading:
They [the Fantastic Four] must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner). And if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal.
It’s possible that Radd will have already perished before picking up in theretrofuturistic ‘60s setting ofFirst Steps, or that things will be streamlined so that Shalla-Bal has always been the de facto Silver Surfer. There’s also a chance to revisit the twin heralds arc of 1999’s “Earth X” arc. Considering the Galactus of this story was a hyper-evolved Franklin Richards, andFranklin is rumored to be inThe First Steps, things could easily come together.
The Silver Surfer’s Cinematic History
Shalla-Bal might not be the most prominent version of the Silver Surfer, but withThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsalready boasting Galactus and(supposedly) Doctor Doomas male villains, having a female foe to balance things out makes sense. What’s more, there’s already been a live-action version of the male Silver Surfer thanks to Tim Story’sFantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surferfeatured Doug Jones as the Silver Surfer (voiced by Laurence Fishburne), as things played out similarly to the comics. The Silver Surfer was a herald of Galactus and kept his own planet safe by leading the Devourer of Worlds to Earth, but this wasn’t supposed to be the end of the story. With a post-credits scene teasing the Silver Surfer’s survival, J. Michael Straczynski was hired to write a spin-off in 2007.
The disappointing reception ofThe Rise of the Silver Surferled to Fox canceling plans for a thirdFantastic Fourmovie alongside the Silver Surfer standalone. Things eventually moved forward withJosh Trank’s malignedFant4stic, although there were again renewed talks about the Silver Surfer getting his own movie.Vice’s Adam McKay expressed interest in a Norrin Radd movie, with Kevin Feige saying,“I look forward to speaking to him more"during a 2019 interview withMTV.
McKay wasstill interested in a Silver Surfer projectas late as 2021, but as Garner has been cast inFirst Steps, it seems likely that Shalla-Bal will be the MCU’s first Silver Surfer. While it’s possible she’ll only be around for one movie and Radd could take over the mantle, the introduction of Garner’s version marks a milestone moment for Marvel movies. There’s still talk about a Silver Surfer outing, with insiderDaniel Richtmansuggesting Shakman’s multi-year Marvel deal will involve aSilver Surferseries for Disney+.
Feige gave an exciting tease of what’s to come at Disney’s APAC Content Showcase 2024 in Singapore, explaining:
The movie [The Fantastic Four: First Steps] comes out next summer, and then all those characters go right into the next Avengers movies, so I’m very excited for the future of the Fantastic Four.
This confirms that The Fantastic Four will be part of the upcomingAvengers: Doomsday, suggesting that Galactus and the Silver Surfer could also play a part if they survive the events of the movie. Given the Silver Surfer’s antihero history and the fact he allied with the Fantastic Four inThe Rise of the Silver Surfer, Shalla-Bal could go down the same route.
The currentDisney+ slate for 2025 is packed, but beyond that, Feige has reiterated that things will be going back to two movies and three series a year. Assuming that Galactus will be the big bad ofFirst Stepsand there’s room for a last-minute cameo of Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom, aSilver Surferseries could serve as a much-needed prequel or sequel to expand Shalla-Bal’s story and even fit Norrin Radd into the mix. Either way, the character’s history as both Shalla-Bal and Norrin Radd makes the Silver Surfer an iconic enemy of the famed Fantastic Four.
