Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal) in action in the Fantastic Four: First Steps. Marvel Studios

Is Reed Richards Fighting a Classic X-Men Foe in FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS? Not Exactly.

Originally posted on Nerdist | By Eric Diaz | Last updated Jul 30, 2025 7:43 PM ET

Back in the ’60s, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby were working together on several series at once. The duo not only produced their opus, Fantastic Four, but also The Mighty Thor, X-Men, Avengers, and others. Although Lee and Kirby co-created Iron Man, Hulk, and Ant-Man together, Kirby only stayed on those comics for a brief time, as his workload was already insane. Regardless, that’s a lot of comics in a relatively short period, and sometimes, they recycled ideas in different titles. Such was the case with the Sentinels in X-Men, and the FF’s Sentry (a totally different Sentry from the recent Thunderbolts* film).

The robotic Sentinels (Left) and the Sentry Sinister (Right) from Marvel Comics. Marvel Comics

The Sentinels first appeared in X-Men #14 in 1965. Bigoted scientist Bolivar Trask created these giant, mutant-hunting robots, and they became a thorn in the X-Men’s side for decades. They became the main adversaries in both the comic book and film versions of the story Days of Future Past. Just a few years later, the FF faced off against a similarly designed giant purple robot in 1967’s Fantastic Four #64.

Except this was a robot of alien origin, created by the Kree race. You may remember them as the villains of Captain Marvel with Brie Larson. Known as “the Sentry Sinister,” it was another robot designed to fight superpowered beings. So, Lee and Kirby were kind of copying themselves here. So no, we don’t think this hints at Reed Richards fighting a Sentinel in the immediate future. But if a Fantastic Four sequel emerges, maybe Sentry Sinister makes trouble for the team? Anything is possible in a post-Secret Wars MCU.

This article first appeared on Nerdist and was syndicated with permission.

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