Julia Garner just stepped off the silver surfboard as Silver Surfer and into a Marvel firestorm. After Marvel dropped the first teaser for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the internet exploded — not with hype, but with hot takes. “Silver Surfer is a dude,” one user complained. Another moaned, “This is gonna be a woke disaster.” Someone even chimed in with, “Totally unnecessary. Disney is still more about erasing than they are about good stories.” Welcome to fandom in 2025.
What many of these keyboard critics missed (besides basic comic book reading) is that Julia Garner isn’t playing Norrin Radd (one of the most powerful Marvel characters). She’s portraying Shalla-Bal — yes, the actual female Silver Surfer from the Marvel comics. You could verify that with one Google search, as one fan clapped back: “Y’all know there’s a female Silver Surfer, right?”
First Set Photos Reveal Shalla-Bal’s Human Form in LA
Now, thanks to new set photos, we’ve got our first proper look at Garner in human form on the Los Angeles set. Filmed on a rocky shoreline with waves crashing around her, the actress wore a flowing white-and-blue dress with cape-like flourishes, her hair slicked back as she raised her arms toward the sea. It’s giving goddess vibes — or at least a powerful MCU debut.
Julia Garner Didn’t Think She’d Get Cast As The MCU’s Silver Surfer
Garner, 30, who broke out in Ozark and Inventing Anna, admitted to EW that she didn’t expect to land the role. “I was confused because I was like, ‘Wait, isn’t the Silver Surfer a man?’” she laughed. But director Matt Shakman wasn’t after Norrin Radd — he wanted Shalla-Bal.
Their first meeting? “All over the place,” she said. “We were talking about communism, brutalist architecture… and then they were like, ‘You got it.’ I was like, ‘Wait, what?’”
Even though filming wrapped, the team is doing some additional photography — which feels a little close to the wire, given the movie drops in July. But hey, Marvel timelines are like the multiverse: always shifting.
Garner’s been doing yoga to prep for all the surfing scenes. “It was weird – I was in motion-cap, but I mean, I wasn’t eating donuts and hamburgers every day and not moving,” she joked.
With The Fantastic Four: First Steps bridging into the MCU multiverse, and Shalla-Bal’s comic backstory tied deeply to Norrin Radd and Galactus, fans might want to hang tight. Anything — and anyone — could show up – especially now that the MCU’s Marvel characters, Fox’s X-Men characters and the new Fantastic Four team crossover.
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What are your thoughts on Julia Garner as the MCU’s Silver Surfer?
