Warning: SPOILERS for The Fantastic Four: First Steps are ahead!
After initially being presented as one of the supervillains the Fantastic Four fought during their first four years of existence, Paul Walter Houser’s scene-stealing Harvey Elder, a.k.a. Mole Man, ended up being an integral ally to Reed Richards, Sur Storm, Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Thanks to him ruling over Subterranea, the citizens of New York City were hidden safely inside the underground kingdom during the superhero team’s final battle with Galactus. But there was a scene between Harvey and Sue that didn’t make First Steps’ final cut, though now we know how it would have gone down because of some storyboards from the 2025 movie.
Storyboard artist Simeon Wilkins shared these storyboards that he drew on Instagram, which show Sue embarking into Subterranea on her own, and in civilian clothing, to meet with Mole Man, who’s being protected by the Moloids.
Those who’ve seen The Fantastic Four: First Steps will remember that Sue Storm, a.k.a. the Invisible Woman, was the one surface dweller whom Harvey Elder trusted. It was thanks to her that a peace deal was brokered between Subterranea and the surface world, and when she came to him for assistance in making sure there were no casualties when Galactus arrived to the Big Apple. This is even after Sue’s husband Reed, a.k.a. Mister Fantastic, derogatorily referred to Elder as Mole Man.
Now, thanks to Simeon Wilkins posting these storyboards on social media, we know how Sue Storm got the ball rolling on that arrangement. Now to the average human, going into Subterranea would be a frightening prospect, especially with all those Moloids looking at you creepily as you’re being guided to meet their ruler. But this is Sue we’re talking about! Between making herself invisible and being able to generate force fields, she could hold her own if things took a turn for the worse underground.
Mole Man made his comic book debut at the same time as the Fantastic Four did, so it’s great that he finally got to appear on the silver screen over 60 years later. Tim Blake Nelson’s character in 2015’s Fantastic Four was originally going to be Harvey Elder, but his name was changed to Harvey Allen during reshoots. With a sequel to First Steps reportedly already in development, here’s hoping we get to see more of Paul Walter Hauser’s character interacting with the team.
In the meantime, the Fantastic Four will return in December 2026 for Avengers: Doomsday, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is still playing in theaters, but count on it becoming available to stream with a Disney+ subscription before the year is over.
