The Marvel canon revolves around the brand’s signature superheroes and supervillains. On occasion, however, the label has made the decision to kill off these characters. Though not always a permanent decision, it usually leads to new characters taking the respective mantles or other changes in the ongoing storylines. Now Marvel has announced plans to kill off another beloved classic character.
Interestingly, these plans appear to line up with the upcoming release of The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The new film is scheduled for a theatrical release on July 25, 2025. Now, coming in June, Marvel Comics will begin putting out a new comic series ahead of that film’s release. It seems as though Marvel has big plans in place for one of the characters featured in the movie.
As fans likely know by now, the MCU’s Fantastic Four film The Fantastic Four: First Steps will introduce a female version of the Silver Surfer, the Shalla-Bal version of the character, with Julia Garner playing the part. She happens to be the love interest of the original Silver Surfer, a male character named Norrin Radd.
Now, as revealed via Marvel.com, Marvel has plans to seemingly kill off Norrin Radd in a new series titled Death of the Silver Surfer. The decision to kill off this classic Marvel character seems to intentionally line up with their decision to introduce Shalla-Bal over Norrin Radd in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie.
The info regarding the new comic series begins by teasing Radd’s fate in the new storyline:
“The five-issue limited series promises a tragic fate for Norrin Radd as a new enemy that even the Power Cosmic can’t overcome rises in might.”
The following logline teases the events of the story:
“This new rival will stop at nothing to crush the Sentinel of the Spaceways and his allies, the Fantastic Four. But their earth-shattering battle will come at a cost: what ancient secrets lie in the shadows of Surfer’s past? Secrets known only to… Galactus?!”
Planet Hulk writer Greg Pak shared the following statement regarding the series:
“In a world of shades of gray, the story of Norrin Radd lets us find a little silver, and I’m so thrilled to have the chance to tell this story with tremendous creators like Editor Tom Groneman, artist Sumit Kumar, and cover artist Dike Ruan. They’re giving this book everything and they’re gonna bend your mind in all the best ways,” Pak revealed.
Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any further Marvel news as we have it, including any additional updates regarding the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Hopefully this series will still manage to appeal to fans of the Silver Surfer, even if it seems to be leading to the death of the beloved classic Marvel character.