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There's a lot we wonder about when it comes to The Thing's physiology. For instance, if his skin is mostly rock, then how is he still an organic life form? While we know that Ben Grimm likes to eat just as much as any of us do, does he actually need to eat in order to live? If so, does he ever need to use the restroom? Not that it's any of my business, but I care about Ben. 

All of this leads to my surprise when The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer unveiled a whole new Thing fact: he's got chompers. In a heartwarming moment, Ebon Moss-Bachrach's Thing cracks a smile in front of a group of delighted children as he hoists a car above his head. As great as Ben Grimm looks in this moment, it led me down a spiral: when have we ever seen The Thing with teeth? I nearly punched a hole through my office wall by accident when I reached for my Fantastic Four Visionaries by George Pérez trade paperback next to my desk, to check for dental evidence. 

George Pérez didn't draw The Thing with teeth. Just like I suspected, he kept in the artistic tradition forged by Jack Kirby where The Thing has a void for a maw, sans teeth. But what about the movies? In the unreleased Roger Corman Fantastic Four movie, The Thing has chiclets that haunt my nightmares. Likewise, his shockingly average-height portrayal in 2005's Fantastic Four film includes teeth. Though let's also remember, in both cases, The Thing was played by a dude in a suit, albeit a suit that still reminds us all how incredible those early Planet of the Apes films were. 

By the time the FF were back onscreen for their 2015 movie, The Thing had a new look thanks to CGI. This is when The Thing starts to become tooth-agnostic. The inside of his mouth in that movie is often in shadow. Sometimes it looks like there's nothing in there, other times you can see the faint shape of teeth from time to time. A real Schrödinger's Tooth if you ask me. 

All of this is to say, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is living loud and proud with their design for The Thing. His teeth, while very human-looking, are still angular - thank Galactus. Imagine if the MCU's Ben Grimm had veneers? All silliness aside, it's worth noting here is that we see him smiling in this trailer, settling not only our question of whether or not he'll have teeth in this movie, but whether or not we'll see Ben Grimm experience joy in his new form. I think that's really touching.

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