If Marvel was at all worried about the box office potential of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, those worries were likely calmed when pre-sales were made available this morning. Bringing “Marvel’s First Family” into the Marvel Cinematic Universe has made the film one of the most highly anticipated films of the summer, and if the demand for pre-sales is any indication, Marvel has a surefire winner that’s ready to dominate. According to users attempting to get tickets on various movie theater websites and apps, ticket sales for The Fantastic Four: First Steps have caused many of them to crash. AMC Theatres, Fandango, and Regal Cinemas have all reported crashes or have had users report crashes on their apps or websites since pre-sales for the film were made available. I personally tested this out on my AMC Theatres app and can verify that the app failed to load and then crashed when I attempted to purchase tickets on their platform. Fans have also been posting screenshots of certain showings of the film, and many of them are close to selling out. While the film hasn’t hit box office tracking yet, it will be interesting to see how high this one will go once box office analysts take a closer look at the movie’s pre-sales.
Why Is ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ So Highly Anticipated?

The anticipation for The Fantastic Four: First Steps is high because the characters will finally be at home within the MCU, and previous film iterations of the popular Marvel IP haven’t fully hit the mark. 2005’s Fantastic Four has gained a bit of a following in recent years, thanks in large part to revisionist history that has made its quality better than it was originally perceived, but its 2007 sequel and the 2015 redo misfire have remained a stain on the brand. Now that the characters are where they rightfully belong, the hope is they can finally be done right.

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This is going to be epic!

The pressure is on for First Steps to be successful for the MCU. Even though Thunderbolts* was well-received by critics and audiences, the film’s box office is coming up on the lower end of MCU releases. As of now, the team-up film has grossed $370.4 million on a reported $180 million budget, which means it will take some more time for it to turn a profit for Marvel Studios. All eyes are now on The Fantastic Four, but with pre-sales crashing movie theater websites and apps, that’s something that should put a huge smile on their faces. Directed by Matt Shakman from a screenplay by Josh Friedman and Eric Pearson, The Fantastic Four: First Steps serves as the first film in Phase Six of the MCU and sees Marvel’s First Family defending their world from the imminent threat of Galactus in the 1960s. The film stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm / Invisible Woman, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm / Thing, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm / Human Torch, Julia Garner as Silver Surfer, Ralph Ineson as Galactus, Paul Walter Hauser and John Malkovich.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps hits screens on July 25.