Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 109

RSVLTS’ New ALIEN Collection Is Terrifyingly Cool

“Alien Day” is usually celebrated on April 26, named for the planet from Ridley Scott’s original film, LV-426. But this year, the folks at RSVLTS are celebrating just a little bit early, with an amazing Alien apparel collection inspired by the iconic franchise. You’ll be able to show off your love for those nasty Xenomorphs and face huggers to the world in a stylish way. Not to mention, you’ll be able to channel your inner Ripley, and display your loyalty to the crew of the Nostromo.

RSVLTS

This first-ever Alien-inspired collection from the folks at RSVLTS includes a wide array of Alien designs and formats. All these Alien pieces are available on RSVLTS’ signature KUNUFLEX material. All designs are available in their classic (unisex) styles/sizing. The collection will also include some additional items and general accessories. Among them are two crewneck t-shirts and two hats. Not included: Jones the cat. You’re going to have to get your own Xenomorph-evading orange kitty. Each button-down shirt retails for $70, and $32 for the crewneck t-shirts. The classic hat is $35, and it’s $30 for the 5-panel hat.

You can check out images of the RSVLTS Alien collection down below:

RSVLTS Alien “Containment Breach” Button-Down ShirtRSVLTSAlien “No One Can Hear You Scream” Button-Down ShirtRSVLTSRSVLTS Alien “The Perfect Organism” Button-Down ShirtRSVLTSAlien “Xenolife” Button-Down ShirtRSVLTSRSVLTS Alien “Free Hugs” RoperRSVLTSAlien “Department of the Colonial Navy” Crewneck ShirtRSVLTSAlien “Hatching Horrors” Button-Down ShirtRSVLTSRSVLTS Alien “Stages of Fear” Button-Down ShirtRSVLTSAlien “Outer Space Nightmare” Crewneck ShirtRSVLTSRSVLTS Alien “Aspen Beer” Crewneck ShirtRSVLTSAlien “Head Hugger” Traditional Style HatRSVLTSAlien “USCSS Nostromo” 5-Panel HatRSVLTS

The Alien franchise, which began 45 years ago with Ridley Scott’s classic film in 1979, is going through a Renaissance right now. Last year, Alien: Romulus was the best film in the franchise in decades, and a hit at the box office. And later this year, the Xenomorph will arrive on television for the first time, with Alien: Earth on FX and Hulu. And another Alien film is already in the works. So what better time to display your love of H.R. Giger’s eternally terrifying creature to the world at large? You can purchase these new Alien shirts and hats right now by heading over to the official RSVLTS site.

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THE LIFE OF CHUCK Trailer Brings a Whole Stephen King Universe to Life

Stephen King and Mike Flanagan might be two masters of horror, but their next partnership will tell a very different type of story. The director isn’t adapting another of the author’s terrifying tales. He’s bringing one of King’s most beautiful stories to the screen. And the latest trailer for The Life of Chuck starring Tom Hiddleston promises that instead of scares these two are teaming up to deliver plenty of wonder and tears.

King’s novella “The Life of Chuck” appeared in his 2020 collection If It Bleeds. Now Mike Flanagan, who knows something about bringing the writer’s stories to life, is bringing King’s tale about how each of us is a “universe” to the big screen. The Life of Chuck will follow the different stages of one man’s existence, through ups and downs and good and bad, in what looks like a truly gorgeous adaptation.

What exactly happens in the story, though? Despite being based on a published work, NEON is being coy in both its trailer for The Life of Chuck and its official synopsis.

From the hearts and minds of Stephen King and Mike Flanagan comes The Life of Chuck, the extraordinary story of an ordinary man. This unforgettable, genre-bending tale celebrates the life of Charles ‘Chuck’ Krantz as he experiences the wonder of love, the heartbreak of loss, and the multitudes contained in all of us. 

We’re fine with not knowing more than that. (We actually recommend not looking up details if you haven’t already read King’s novella.) If this incredible trailer is any indication. most moviegoers will be, too, after they see it.

NEON

We do know a few more things about the film, though. Flanagan wrote the script. It also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Karen Gillian, Jacob Tremblay, Mark Hamill, Mia Sara, Carl Lumbly, Benjamin Pajak, and Kate Siegel. We also know when we can see it. The Life of Chuck makes its majestic move to theaters in select cities on June 6. It arrives everywhere the following week on June 13.

When The Life of Chuck debuts it will surely contain multitudes. Both on the screen and in the feelings it evokes in us.

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LEGO Releases 9 New Star Wars Sets for STAR WARS Day: Ships, Droids, and More

May the 4th is just around the corner, but don’t worry if you haven’t made plans for Star Wars Day just yet. LEGO more than has you covered this year. The company has announced a whole new collection of sets for the galaxy far, far away. LEGO will be release nine new sets in celebration of Star Wars day.

The LEGO Group shared a first-look at the nine new Star Wars building sets ahead of this year’s “Power the Force” May the 4th celebration. Though only announced today, these pieces will be available in time for the “holiday.” The new Star Wars sets hit stores on May 1st, 2025. Those who stop by the LEGO Star Wars booth from April 18-20 at this year’s Star Wars Celebration in Japan will also get a chance to see them early.

Okay, okay, don’t get impatient like a whiny teen who wants to go to the Tosche station to pick up power converters. Here are the nine new LEGO sets released in celebration of Star Wars Day.

LEGO Star Wars Jango Fett’s Firespray-Class Starship ($299.99)

LEGO

This 2,970-piece Star Wars Jango Fett’s Firespray-Class Starship set is the newest addition to the Ultimate Collector Series. It features “an authentic interior, a movable main entrance, adjustable blasters and a seismic charge.” You can also display it in a landing position or upright flight position thanks to its display stand.

LEGO Star Wars Brick-Built Star Wars Logo ($59.99)

LEGO

Simple but perfect (and long-overdue), this 700-piece is more than just the franchise’s iconic logo. The LEGO Star Wars Brick-Built Star Wars Logo includes “hidden surprises and details for fans to discover as they build.”

LEGO Star Wars Chopper (C1-10P) Astromech Droid ($99.99)

LEGO

This building set of Star Wars: Rebels‘ sassy little droid “features head movements, posable arms and hidden tools.” It also comes with a Chopper figure and an information plaque. We are obsessed with LEGO Chopper also known as the LEGO Star Wars Chopper (C1-10P) Astromech Droid.

LEGO Star Wars Kylo Ren Helmet and LEGO Star Wars Jango Fett Helmet ($69.99 Each)

LEGO

Two iconic helmets are also getting their own plastic brick replicas. The 529-piece Kylo Ren LEGO replica helmet has “pure dark side detail,” while the 616-piece Jango Fett collectible helmet will need protection from any Mace Windu LEGO minifigs you might have.

LEGO Star Wars Kylo Ren’s Command Shuttle ($69.99)

LEGO

You can pair your Kylo Ren Helmet with this model of his sinister Command Shuttle. It’s the latest addition to LEGO’s Starship Collection. The 386-piece LEGO shuttle will add something dark to your shelf.

LEGO Star Wars Rebel U-Wing Starfighter ($69.99) 

LEGO

You can make sure your Kylo Command ship doesn’t get out of line with this 594-piece set of the great Rebel carrier. It not only has a swing function so you can put the wings into a ‘V’ formation. The LEGO Star Wars Rebel U-Wing Starfighter even comes with its own crew (and foes). The collection includes minifigures of Cassian Andor, K-2SO, an ISB Tactical Agent, and the first-ever LEGO Minifigure of Andor‘s Dedra Meero.

LEGO Star Wars BrickHeadz Luke Skywalker (Rebel Pilot) ($9.99)

LEGO

Luke Skywalker was a lot of things to the galaxy far, far away, and you can immortalize his time as a rebel pilot with his new BrickHeadz piece. But he’s not the only one who wants to be a Star Wars chip off the old plastic block…

LEGO Star Wars BrickHeadz Revenge of the Sith Heroes and Villains ($49.99)

LEGO

Luke’s dad Anakin is among the five BrickHeadz included in LEGO Star Wars‘s Revenge of the Sith Heroes and Villains collection. It also comes with Mace Windu, Emperor Palpatine, Padmé Amidala, and General Grievous.

If you decide to celebrate Star Wars Day this year by building all nine of these LEGO sets, plan on it becoming more of a Star Wars Week party.

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THE LAST OF US Season 2 ‘Spoiled’ an Abby Twist, Here’s Why

Sometimes, adaptations have to make major changes. And that’s because what works in one medium can become impossible to emulate in another. For example, when one sets out to play a game, one probably intends to spend at least 40 hours on it, if not more. But no one is about to pour 40 hours into watching a TV series. (Why not? We don’t know. But that’s the fact of the matter.) The Last of Us season two introduced a new major character from The Last of Us—Part II game, Abby. But The Last of Us series changes Abby’s introduction, and some information about her that players only learn deep into playing the game revealed itself almost immediately.

This change confused and disappointed some game players, but showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann shared with the press that there was simply no choice but to change Abby’s introduction and character reveals from the games.

HBO

Druckmann offered the following about the changes made to Abby from The Last of Us games to its TV series, “In the game, you play as Abby, so you immediately form an empathic connection with her, because you’re surviving as her, you’re running through the snow, you’re fighting infected. And we can withhold certain things and make it a mystery that will be revealed later in the story. We couldn’t do that in the show because you’re not playing as her.”

Druckmann continued, explaining it was important for Abby to immediately be tied into the larger story of the HBO show. “Where that revelation happens in the game, if we were to stick to a very similar timeline, viewers would have to wait a very, very long time to get that context. It would probably get spoiled to them between seasons, and we didn’t want that, so it felt appropriate for those reasons to move that up and give the viewer that context right off the bat.”

Speaking with Collider, Druckmann further noted, “The fact that Abby is a Firefly is something we withheld in the game for a very, very long time. But here we just decided to reveal it very early and to just lean into it and show who she is. To me, the key was to find a certain ferocity and a relentlessness, and I think you’ll see some of that as the season goes on… There is a power that Abby gives you in the game as you’re playing her, but we don’t have gameplay. So… the information delivery system had to be different.”

Read next

Who Is Abby on THE LAST OF US Season 2? (And What Does She Want with Joel)

Timing, connection, and storytelling sound like three very good reasons for The Last of Us season two to change Abby’s story from the games. The whole point of an adaptation is to adapt. The games are always there for people who want to play them.

The post THE LAST OF US Season 2 ‘Spoiled’ an Abby Twist, Here’s Why appeared first on Nerdist.

Florence Pugh Fought MCU Lawyers to Jump Off World’s Second Tallest Building in THUNDERBOLTS*

I mean, it’s good to have goals and aspirations, right? Seeking to break records and do the impossible is part of the fun of life. And that’s definitely what Florence Pugh had in her head when she filmed the MCU’s Thunderbolts* movie. In fact, she wouldn’t even let the MCU’s lawyers (a fearsome force, we bet) stop her from throwing herself off the world’s second-tallest building while filming the movie. Say that sentence five times fast. Pugh has now shared that during the filming of Thunderbolts*, she went up against insurance risk and no doubt Marvel’s legal team and her own to insist that she complete a totally insane stunt. She even incessantly emailed Kevin Feige to ensure her point came across. Forget leaping off a tall building, that’s true gumption. Here’s what Pugh had to say about her insistence on jumping off the world’s second-tallest building while filming Thunderbolts*.

For the record, the second-tallest building in the world is Merdeka 118 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The building is 2,722 feet tall. (Holy!!!) Pugh’s character Yelena was set to jump off the tower in Thunderbolts*, but Pugh wasn’t about to let a stunt double have all the fun. Pugh shares, “I got on all the emails. It was in the script, and then slowly as we got closer and closer to shooting, they said they don’t think it’s going to happen because it’s a crazy insurance ordeal and obviously we’re not going to throw [me] off the second tallest building in the world. I was like what the fuck? Of course we are! We have to do that.”

Marvel Studios

Obviously! We bet Thunderbolts* Health and Safety absolutely loved this turn of events with Pugh. Pugh continues, “I was being a sassy Karen emailing Kevin [Feige] and saying it’s going to do wonders for the press tour. We have to do this! We’re going to have three women break three different Guinness World Records, and we’ll do this and this. I had to keep on pushing, and then they’re like, ‘Okay, if you want to fall off the second-tallest building, we’ll figure it out for you.’ I don’t mind heights. I quite like them and enjoy them, but that was a whole different ballgame and insane. The mental control I had to do that day was its own super power.”

To put into perspective what this Thunderbolts* stunt was really like, Pugh tells us more about the fallout. “I fell asleep for three hours after I did the stunt because my brain [went down].” Phew! That’s intense. Someone get Pugh up there in the stunt hall of fame with Tom Cruise. She definitely deserves it after this. Good thing the Oscars just opened up a Stunt category too…

Read next

New Academy Award Category for Achievement in Stunt Design Is Now Official

Florence Pugh stars in Thunderbolts* alongside Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Lewis Pullman, Geraldine Viswanathan, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. This movie features a team of misfits forced to work together to save the world and prove they are more than their past.

Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts* releases in theaters on May 2.

The post Florence Pugh Fought MCU Lawyers to Jump Off World’s Second Tallest Building in THUNDERBOLTS* appeared first on Nerdist.

Why James Rhodes Should Be the MCU’s New Iron Man

Many of the names left off the cast list for Avengers: Doomsday are quite puzzling to us. But perhaps none more than Don Cheadle as James “Rhodey” Rhodes, a.k.a. War Machine. The last time we saw his character was in the rather dismal Secret Invasion series on Disney+, where we learned he was replaced by a Skrull. And while an Armor Wars movie is on-again/off-again, it seems more “off again” lately. Is it even happening still at this point? Who knows. We firmly believe that not only does Rhodey deserve to come back properly, we also believe it’s time for him to officially become the MCU’s Iron Man.

In Marvel Comics, James Rhodes Was Iron Man Before He Was War MachineMarvel Comics

In the comics, James Rhodes was the second hero to go by the name Iron Man. This was a decade before he was ever War Machine. Writer David Michelinie and artists John Byrne and Bob Layton were James Rhodes’ creators. He first appeared in Iron Man #118 in 1979 as a military pilot who works for Tony Stark. In the comics, he was a Marine, not a member of the Air Force like the MCU. Even though he was a new character, Marvel retconned him as an old buddy of Tony’s from the Vietnam War era. Their friendship would evolve and grow over the years, until he became firmly established as Tony’s longtime best friend.

Marvel Comics

In 1983, Marvel began a storyline where Tony became incapacitated due to a relapse with his alcoholism. Rhodes subsequently took over as Iron Man soon after. This storyline lasted quite some time, with Rhodey as Iron Man for a full two years. During the original Secret Wars event series, it was Rhodes in the Iron Man armor, not Tony. Very few of his fellow Avengers knew the truth about their teammate. He was even the CEO of Stark Industries for a good chunk of time. Eventually, he adopted his own separate armor and identity of War Machine in the ‘90s. But his heroic career began as Iron Man.

Tony Stark’s Death in Endgame Provided the Perfect Opportunity for Rhodey to Become Iron ManMarvel Studios

In the MCU, Tony’s death in Endgame presented the perfect opportunity for James Rhodes to take up the mantle of Iron Man. What better way to honor his fallen friend? As it stands, War Machine is a very aggressive name for a superhero whose primary role is peacekeeper anyway. Instead of that logical outcome, we found out that Skrulls replaced Rhodey for who knows how long. And we don’t even know when it happened. Seemingly, this alien imposter Rhodey gave up superheroing for a career as a political advisor. Sorry, that’s just not as fun as superhero.

There are many reasons why Rhodey should step up and become Iron Man officially. For starters, we feel the MCU simply needs an Iron Man. The red and gold armor is iconic, as is the name. Iron Man is just a cooler, less Edgelord name than “War Machine.” As much as Sam Wilson earned the chance to be Captain America, Rhodey has earned the chance to be Iron Man. After all these years being Tony’s backup, he deserves to take up the mantle. And no one can say it’s not comics-accurate. Rhodey was Iron Man in the Marvel Comics universe long before he was ever War Machine.

The MCU Needs a Hero Called “Iron Man” Marvel Studios/Marvel Comics

It also provides great visual iconography for future films. Iron Man, the heroic legacy of Tony Stark, vs. Doctor Doom, who looks like (and is likely a variant of) Tony Stark? That would be amazing to see on screen. And it feels like way too good an opportunity to pass up for Marvel Studios. It’s likely the proposed Armor Wars movie was designed as a setup for James Rhodes to take over as Iron Man. But we don’t need to see him wrestle with taking over the legacy of Tony Stark for a whole film. We had a whole series of Sam Wilson doing something similar already in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Just drop us into an MCU where not only is Rhodey Iron Man, but also leading (or co-leading) the Avengers.

James Rhodes Needs a Personal Life Outside of Being Tony’s Best Friend

It’s also high time Rhodey got some kind of a personal life. We also wouldn’t mind if he had a romantic fling with his longtime comic book love interest Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel. She is technically around his age, but she just doesn’t physically age due to her cosmic powers. However, the real-life age gap between Brie Larson and Don Cheadle would likely freak out the audience, so we doubt Marvel would go there. This is despite both actors being full-grown adults. The MCU missed an opportunity to have Rhodey and Carol know one another from their Air Force days, as they would have enlisted around the same time.

Marvel Studios

As of right now, Don Cheadle isn’t announced for a role in Avengers: Doomsday. But that doesn’t mean he’s not in Avengers: Secret Wars. We highly doubt that the MCU would end the Multiverse Saga without Rhodey coming back at least on one more occasion. And when he does, we hope to see him in the iconic gold and red armor of Iron Man. After eight appearances in the MCU (nine if you count the Terrance Howard version in the first Iron Man), he’s more than earned it.

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THE LAST OF US Season 2 Majorly Outperforms Season 1

There’s no guarantee that shows that performed well in season one will perform again in season two. In fact, with the increasingly normal two-year gaps between seasons, keeping an audience can be trickier than ever. But one show that shows no signs of slowing down in season two is The Last of Us. Indeed, The Last of Us’ season two premiere outperformed its season one debut. And that means season one set it up very well indeed. We guess this makes sense because The Last of Us season one really became an incredibly buzzy series, and it had an ardent layer of support from lovers of the game. Still retaining and growing a fanbase into season two is a feat trickier than escaping Infected zombies. Here are all the insights into how The Last of Us season two outperformed season one.

The Last of Us season two debuted with 5.3 million same-day U.S. cross-platform viewers. And according to HBO, that outpaces the Season 1 premiere by about 10%. At the time, the season one premiere of The Last of Us tied for HBO’s biggest premiere with House of the Dragon with 4.7M. But, of course, The Last of Us season two outpaces that by many thousands of viewers.

Max

In total, The Last of Us season one premiere has seen about 32M viewers. And that gets it the title for the largest audience that an HBO/Max debut season has ever seen. Fans were even taking the time to catch up or remind themselves of what happened in season one of The Last of Us before season two, since views of the episodes during premiere week were 150% higher than the week before.

The Last of Us season two takes us back to a dystopian, post-apocalyptic universe where a fungal infection turns people into monsters. The synopsis for the season shares, “Five years after the events of the first season, Joel and Ellie are drawn into conflict with each other and a world even more dangerous and unpredictable than the one they left behind.”

Read next

THE LAST OF US Season 2 Premiere Recap: New Revelations and Questions

Season two of The Last of Us includes a returning cast of Pedro Pascal as Joel, Bella Ramsey as Ellie, Gabriel Luna as Tommy, and Rutina Wesley as Maria. New cast includes Kaitlyn Dever as Abby, Isabela Merced as Dina, Young Mazino as Jesse, Ariela Barer as Mel, Tati Gabrielle as Nora, Spencer Lord as Owen, Danny Ramirez as Manny, and Jeffrey Wright as Isaac. Catherine O’Hara also guest stars.

The Last of Us seasons one and two are based on the acclaimed video game franchise developed by Naughty Dog for the PlayStation® consoles. The series is written and executive produced by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann.

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Anthony Mackie Says AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY Will Bring That Old Marvel Feeling Back

The MCU is continuing to press forward with new films like Thunderbolts*, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and Avengers: Doomsday on the horizon. After many years of films, shows, and Multiverse action, there’s this continuous argument that fans are becoming fatigued with this cinematic universe. That doesn’t seem to be the case considering so many people tuned in to watch the Avengers: Doomsday cast chair lineup of hours. But perhaps the enthusiasm for the franchise could be waning among some. But, Anthony Mackie, who plays Captain America, says that Avengers: Doomsday will bring that old Marvel feeling back for everyone. 

In an interview with IGN, Mackie said filming was set to start very soon and that everyone was super excited. “I’m really excited for what this project is going to be,” Mackie affirmed. “It’s going to give the audience that old Marvel feeling that they always had.”

Marvel Studios

Avengers: Doomsday has a very large cast, some of whom haven’t been announced yet. So it is a little hard to believe that this film will feel more gritty and character-focused like earlier offerings. Who can forget the thrill of Captain America: The Winter Soldier? What a banger. We will see if Avengers: Doomsday does give us that old Marvel feeling when it hits theaters on May 1, 2026. 

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TWILIGHT In Concert Will Tour 60 Cities Across the U.S.

Believe it or not, Twilight fans, the saga of Edward and Bella is 20 years old this year. Yes, Stephanie Meyer’s pop culture juggernaut was first published in 2005, with the film following just three years later. As a way of celebrating, Lionsgate Films has announced (via Variety) that GEA Live’s national Twilight in Concert tour in the U.S. The tour will begin with a preview performance in Spokane, Wash., on Sept. 12, and opens on “National Twilighters Day” in Seattle on Sept. 13. All in all, the tour will play in 60 cities across the country.

Lionsgate

For this expansive Twilight concert tour, the musicians will perform the film score in synchronization with the original movie, presented in its entirety on large screens. To add a little more romantic flavor to the proceedings, more than 1,000 candles will illuminate the stage. As it hits the 20-year mark, the Twilight franchise is officially nostalgia bait. It feels like only yesterday that Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart were the focus of every bit of media attention. While we have all gotten older, Edward and Bella remain perpetual adolescents.

Love it or hate it, the Twilight Saga is one of the most successful film franchises of all time. Over just five films, the series grossed over $3.3 billion. More than just any financial success, it changed pop culture. Twilight is when movie studios began leaning into known IP with unknowns (or relative unknowns) over paying big stars. The swarms of fans camping out overnight at Comic-Con exploded that convention into mainstream awareness. It also began the trend of mining YA novels for blockbuster franchises, leading to hits like The Hunger Games. And for an entire generation, Twilight is their entire reference point for vampires. Dracula who?

To purchase tickets for Twilight in Concert, and to see every scheduled date of the tour, click here.

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Is THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS Introducing Franklin Richards and Setting Up an MCU Reboot?

The Marvel Comics Universe has no shortage of Omega-level powerhouses like Jean Grey, Scarlet Witch, to name a few. And then there are the Eternals, the godlike Celestials, and Galactus. But one of the most powerful characters in Marvel history is likely debuting in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. And that character is probably going to be a baby. We’re talking about the firstborn child of Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman, Franklin Richards. With the confirmation that Vanessa Kirby’s Sue Storm is pregnant in the film, it no doubt means Franklin is about to make his MCU debut, even if it’s just as an infant. And this is quite a big deal for the Multiverse Saga, and the MCU as a whole.

The Son of Mr. Fantastic and Invisible Woman Is Born in Fantastic Four Annual #6Marvel Comics

Franklin Benjamin Richards first appears in Fantastic Four Annual #6 in 1968 in story by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. In this issue, he was born to Reed and Sue Richards, whose genes were altered by cosmic rays. Initially, the assumption was that Franklin was a mutant whose X-gene was even more powerful thanks to his cosmic-powered parents. Thanks to the magic of “comic book time” Franklin was a toddler for the entire decade of the ‘70s, but began manifesting his powers quite early. His powers were psionic in nature, including telekinesis, telepathy, astral projection, as well as manifesting matter and energy manipulation. Because he was just a small child, his father, Mister Fantastic, placed mental dampers to limit Franklin’s use of his powers.

Franklin Richards, Kid SuperheroMarvel Comics

Throughout much of the ‘70s and ‘80s, Fantastic Four writers portrayed Franklin as an average little boy. Well, an average boy with nearly unlimited power. Because of this, he needed special care. His original nanny was none other than the witch Agatha Harkness, and later, his caretaker was H.E.R.B.I.E., the robot. Despite the power dampening, his innate abilities were so strong that in moments of great stress, or perceived danger to himself or his family, they would manifest in grand ways. Franklin was able to take out villains like Annihilus, Blastaar, and even the demon lord Mephisto with a thought. He was a tiny deus ex machina. While still a small child, he even joined the superteam Power Pack, who were all little kids. As a member, he used the codename Tattletale.

Marvel Comics

From time to time during this era, we did see glimpses of what an older Franklin Richards would be like. We learned that the adult Franklin was in a relationship with Rachel Summers, the daughter of Cyclops and Jean Grey. This reveal came in the classic Uncanny X-Men story, “Days of Future Past.” In one reality, Franklin and Rachel even had a child together, Jonathan Richards, who was the villain Hyperstorm. This villain didn’t last, though. As a bad guy with the combined DNA of the primary X-Men and Fantastic Four members, he was just too OP to keep around.

The ’90s Were a Chaotic Era for Franklin RichardsMarvel Comics

The ‘90s were a tumultuous time for Franklin, as his grandfather, Nathaniel Richards, kidnapped him, took him into the future, and returned him to the present as the teenage Psi-Lord. This teenage Franklin was part of a team using the name the Fantastic Force. This spin-off of the Fantastic Four ultimately proved not to be very popular. Fans mocked what a blatant ripoff Psi-Lord was of the X-Men’s Cable. After just a few years, Marvel writers removed Franklin’s abduction into the future from the timeline entirely. Just like that, Franklin was just a little kid again, no older than six or seven. But somehow, things still got worse for him.

Onslaught Unlocks Franklin Richards’ Highest Potential Marvel Comics

The villain Onslaught, a combination of Magneto and Charles Xavier, wanted to use Franklin’s unlimited genetic potential for himself. To save his parents, as well as the Avengers and the Hulk, Franklin created a pocket universe for them to exist in for over a year. That’s when Marvel revealed that Franklin’s reality-warping powers could literally create another universe. With this potential unlocked, even the godlike Celestials considered elevating the child into a member of the Celestial Host. Readers eventually learned that Franklin is immortal, and will stand by Galactus’s side when the universe ends. In fact, in one distant future, Galactus will be the Herald of Franklin.

Franklin Saves His Little Sister, Valeria Marvel Comics

In the early ’80s, Susan Richards became pregnant with a second child, but her baby was sadly stillborn. Many years later, Franklin used his power to go back in time and save the baby from death. He whisked her to another dimension, where Doctor Doom raised her. She returned to the present much older, named Valeria Richards. Eventually, Franklin altered time even further, so that she was raised alongside him. She has no superpowers, but inherited her father’s superior intellect. And because of her brother’s interference in the timestream, she had a second chance at life. This meant that Franklin got to grow up with a kid sister.

Secret Wars Aftermath, Franklin Richards Creates New Realities Marvel Comics

After the Multiverse was destroyed in the 2015 series Secret Wars, Doctor Doom fused the remnants into Battleworld, where he ruled as God Emperor. In the aftermath, after Reed Richards and Doom fight it out, the Multiverse is restored. Franklin and his family leave for other dimensions, and he uses his vast power to restore reality, as well as create new universes. When the FF eventually return to Earth 616, more time has passed where they were on their journey than on Earth and Franklin is now a young teenager when he returns. Thanks to the massive effort of creating countless new universes, upon returning to Earth-616, Franklin exhausts his powers.

Teenage Franklin Discovers He’s Not a MutantMarvel Comics

Franklin and his family try to resume a normal life. Now an emo teen, Franklin dyed his blonde hair jet black. However, “normal” is never in the cards for long in the Richards family. During a time when his powers were seemingly gone, Professor Xavier informed Franklin that he was not actually a mutant. His cosmic powers were so vast, that he unconsciously rewrote his own DNA to appear as if he had an X-gene. But he was something far greater than human or mutant. Recently, he’s discovered that his powers are slowly returning. But Franklin chooses to only use them one day a year, and in secret. It’s only a matter of time before Franklin’s full powers bloom once more.

Franklin Richards in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and His MCU FutureMarvel Comics

So what does Franklin Richards’ arrival mean for the MCU? Well, if his reality-warping powers are even somewhat similar to the comics, he could be the key to the future. It’s likely that at the end of Avengers: Secret Wars, Doctor Doom will be defeated and the Multiverse reborn. But if Franklin uses his powers to restore reality, they could use him to make some significant changes. We wouldn’t be shocked if Franklin Richards somehow fuses the histories of the MCU Earth 616, the X-Men’s Earth-10005, and his own Fantastic Four retro ‘60s Earth into one cohesive history. Yes folks, a Marvel reboot. Because of this, this as-yet-uncast actor (as far as we know) could be the most important player in the MCU since Tony Stark put on his Iron Man armor.

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