The first teaser trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps has been released, but fans are already divided about a small detail included in the 20-second clip.
The new MCU film, starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn as the heroic quartet, is set to premiere in July.
The blockbuster, which is a period piece set in the 1960s, will also star British actor Ralph Ineson as villain Galactus.
In the teaser, which doesn’t feature the lead actor, a group of people including four children are seen running up to a storefront, where images of the Fantastic Four’s space shuttle launch are being shown on television.
However, viewers have picked up on an audio detail in the teaser, where the same laugh track, of children giggling is played three times.
It’s not entirely clear why the track plays three times in quick succession but it has caused some debate on social media.
Film critic Jeff Zhang wrote: “Same ‘kids laughing’ stock audio played three times in 20 seconds. Disney reaching completely unprecedented levels of not giving a s***.”
A scene from The Fantastic Four: First Steps teaser trailer (Marvel/Disney)
“Lol, they couldn’t record better laughing sounds?” asked one viewer.
“That children laughing sound effect has haunted me since Phantom Menace where it plays twice in the same scene. can’t believe it’s used twice in like 20 seconds here,” added a third, referring to the critically polarising 1999 Star Wars film.
Another wrote: “The Fantastic Four: First Steps teaser….for the trailer… And they go ahead and use…Star Wars Phantom Menace kids laugh 3 times…damn not a good start.”
A fifth viewer joked: “Really happy for everyone to see — well, hear — some of my work at my new job in the sound department of marvel’s teaser trailer department, so excited for this first step(!) in a new direction for my career.”
Meanwhile, some fans have defended the teaser against naysayers. One person said: “Notice how they are only complaining about the kids laugh tracks because that’s the only thing they can nitpick about this.”
Another noted: “You already know it’s the MCU when people are literally complaining about children laughing.”
It remains to be seen whether this audio track makes it into the final film and if it was a deliberate decision that is somehow tied to the film’s narrative.
Disney’s Marvel Studios acquired the rights to the Fantastic Four in 2019 when the company merged with Fox.
The original Fantastic Four comic books follow a group of scientists who develop superhero qualities after they are exposed to a mysterious cosmic storm.
Last November, news leaked that Pascal was “in talks” to lead the reboot. While earlier that year, Mila Kunis was forced to shut down rumours that she had been tapped to play Sue Storm.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is set to be released on 25 July 2025.
