HERBIE MCU Debut: Fantastic Four Cast Reveal Art Includes the Team's Fan-Favorite Robot

This morning, Marvel Studios officially revealed the cast of its upcoming Fantastic Four reboot. The reveal was made via a new piece of art from Wesley Burt, which features takes on each character inspired by their respective cast member. While the four founding members of the team are the highlight, a fifth member also makes a cameo: HERBIE! The Fantastic Four's faithful robot companion can be seen offering a cup of coffee to Ben Grimm as Johnny Storm watches on. At this time, it's unclear if HERBIE will actually feature in the film, or if this is just meant as a small Easter egg for fans. 

The teaser art for Fantastic Four can be found below. 

Who is HERBIE?

For those unfamiliar with the character, HERBIE first made his debut in The New Fantastic Four animated series in 1978. In the series, HERBIE took the Human Torch's place on the team. A long-standing myth was that Marvel was worried that Johnny Storm's appearance might convince younger viewers to play with fire. However, the reality is that the Human Torch's film rights had been licensed out, necessitating a new character take his place. Like the rest of the Fantastic Four, the character of HERBIE was co-created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. 

One year later, HERBIE would make his official comics debut. HERBIE first appeared in Fantastic Four #209, which was written by Marv Wolfman and drawn by John Byrne. In the decades since, HERBIE has become a recurring character in the Fantastic Four canon. Many of the character's appearances have been on the smaller side, but HERBIE has gotten some bigger roles on occasion. In 2005 HERBIE was paired up with Franklin Richards in a memorable series of stories written by Marc Sumerak with art by Chris Eliopoulos. The series, titled Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius, is an all-ages comedy seemingly inspired by Calvin and Hobbes. 

HERBIE in the MCU

If HERBIE does appear in the MCU, it could give us a better idea about the tone and direction that the movie will take. Fox's 2015 Fantastic Four reboot took a dark and gritty approach to the source material that, frankly, had little to do with the comics that inspired it. The fact that HERBIE appeared in the teaser art for the movie suggests that Marvel is going for an approach that more closely mirrors the Lee and Kirby run. That's not too surprising given how the MCU movies have adapted the source material, but it does bode well! 

There's still a lot we don't know about the movie just yet, but we should start to learn a lot more about Fantastic Four soon, as the movie will be releasing in theaters on July 25th, 2025.

What do you think of this new design for HERBIE? Do you think we'll see the character appear in the film itself? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!