Galactus
Galactus is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Formerly a mortal man, he is a cosmic entity who consumes planets to sustain his life force, and serves a functional role in the upkeep of the primary Marvel continuity. He was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first appeared in Fantastic Four #48. Lee and Kirby wanted to introduce a character that broke from the archetype of the standard villain. In the character's first appearance, Galactus was depicted as a god-like figure that fed by draining living planets of their energy, and operated without regard to the morality or judgments of mortal beings.
Galactus's initial origin was that of a Taa-an space explorer named Galan who gained cosmic abilities by passing near a star, but writer Mark Gruenwald further developed the character's origins, presenting Taa and Galan as existing in the universe prior to the Big Bang that began the setting of the current universe. As Galan's universe came to an end, he merged with the "Sentience of the Universe" to become Galactus, an entity who must consume planets to sustain his existence. Additional material written by John Byrne, Jim Starlin, and Louise Simonson explored Galactus's role and purpose in the Marvel Universe, and examined the character's actions through themes of genocide, manifest destiny, ethics, and natural/necessary existence. Frequently accompanied by a herald, the character has appeared as both antagonist and protagonist in central and supporting roles. He is depicted as the son of Taaia and the father of Gali/Galacta. Since debuting in the Silver Age of Comic Books, Galactus has played a role in over five decades of Marvel continuity. In 2009, Galactus ranked fifth on IGN's list of "Top 100 Comic Book Villains", which cited the character's "larger-than-life presence" as making him one of the more important villains ever created. IGN also noted "Galactus is one of the few villains on our list to really defy the definition of an evil-doer" as the character is compelled to destroy worlds because of his hunger, rather than out of malicious ends.
The character has been featured in other Marvel media, such as arcade games, video games, animated television series, the 2007 film Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, and the 2025 Marvel Cinematic Universe film The Fantastic Four: First Steps, portrayed by Ralph Ineson.
Publication history
Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist-coplotter Jack Kirby, the character debuted in The Fantastic Four #48.Origin
In 1966, just a few years after launching Marvel Comics' flagship superhero title Fantastic Four, creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby collaborated on an antagonist designed to break the supervillain mold of the time and instead be a being with god-like stature and power. As Lee recalled in 1993,Kirby described his biblical inspirations for Galactus and an accompanying character, an angelic herald Lee called the Silver Surfer:
Kirby elaborated, "Galactus in actuality is a sort of god. He is beyond reproach, beyond anyone's opinion. In a way he is kind of a Zeus, who fathered Hercules. He is his own legend, and of course, he and the Silver Surfer are sort of modern legends, and they are designed that way."
Writer Mike Conroy expanded on Lee and Kirby's explanations: "In five short years from the launch of the Fantastic Four, the Lee/Kirby duo... had introduced a whole host of alien races or their representatives... there were the Skrulls, the Watcher and the Stranger, all of whom Lee and Kirby used in the foundations of the universe they were constructing, one where all things were possible but only if they did not flout the 'natural laws' of this cosmology. In the nascent Marvel Universe, characters acted consistently, whatever comic they were appearing in. Their actions reverberated through every title. It was pure soap opera but on a cosmic scale, and Galactus epitomized its epic sweep."
This led to the introduction of Galactus in Fantastic Four #48–50, which fans began calling "The Galactus Trilogy". Kirby did not intend Galactus to reappear, to preserve the character's awe-inspiring presence. Fan popularity, however, prompted Lee to ask Kirby for Galactus' reappearance, and the character became a mainstay of the Marvel Universe.
1960s
To preserve the character's mystique, his next two appearances were nonspeaking cameos in Thor #134, and Daredevil #37, respectively. Numerous requests from fans prompted the character to be featured heavily in Fantastic Four #74–77. After a flashback appearance in Silver Surfer #1, the character returned to Earth in Thor #160–162. Galactus' origin was eventually revealed in Thor #168–169.1970s and 1980s
The character made appearances in Fantastic Four #120–123 and Thor #225–228. These two storylines introduced two new heralds for Galactus. Galactus also featured in Fantastic Four #172–175 and 208–213.Stan Lee and Jack Kirby reunited for the origin of the Silver Surfer and Galactus in the one-shot graphic novel The Silver Surfer: The Ultimate Cosmic Experience! in 1978. This Marvel Fireside Book, published by Simon & Schuster, was an out-of-continuity retelling of the origin story without the Fantastic Four.
The full Lee-and-Kirby origin story was reprinted in the one-shot Super-Villain Classics #1: Galactus – The Origin, inked by Vince Colletta and George Klein, lettered by John Morelli and colored by Andy Yanchus. While nearly identical to the previous origin, this story featured supplemental material, edits, and deletions by writer Mark Gruenwald, pencillers John Byrne and Ron Wilson and inker Jack Abel. Rather than traveling into a dying star, the character enters the core of the collapsing universe before the Big Bang; the story was later reprinted as Origin of Galactus #1.
The character guest-starred in Rom #26–27. Galactus featured in two related storylines in Fantastic Four #242–244 and later #257, in which writer-artist John Byrne introduced the conceit of Galactus feeling remorse for his actions, and the weight of his genocides. In the issue, Death assures Galactus of his role and purpose as one of shepherd and weeder in guiding the universe to its proper purpose, and Galactus remains resolute. Byrne further elaborated on this concept in Fantastic Four #262, which sparked controversy. At the end of the story, Eternity, an abstract entity in the Marvel Universe, appears to validate the existence of Galactus as necessary for the natural order and essential to prevent an even more catastrophic fate; Howard University professor of literature Marc Singer criticized this, accusing the writer-artist of using the character to "justify planetary-scale genocide." Byrne and Stan Lee also collaborated on a one-shot Silver Surfer story in which Galactus returned to Zenn-La after the Surfer's rebellion and drained it of energy after allowing the populace to flee.
Writer-penciller John Byrne and inker Terry Austin produced "The Last Galactus Story" as a serial in the anthology comic-magazine Epic Illustrated #26–34. Nine of a scheduled 10 installments appeared. Each was six pages with the exception of the eighth installment. The magazine was cancelled with issue #34, leaving the last chapter unpublished and the story unfinished; however, Byrne later published the conclusion on his website. Galactus played a pivotal role in the limited series Secret Wars #1–12, and became a recurring character in Silver Surfer .
Stan Lee and artist John Buscema also produced the 64-page hardcover graphic novel Silver Surfer: Judgment Day, in which Galactus clashes with the demonic entity Mephisto.
1990s
Galactus was featured in the miniseries The Infinity Gauntlet #1–6, The Infinity War #1–6 and Cosmic Powers #1–6. The character starred in the six-issue miniseries Galactus the Devourer, written by Louise Simonson and illustrated by John Buscema, which climaxed with Galactus' death. Simonson originally conceived that the story arc would occur in Silver Surfer, but the title was cancelled due to dwindling sales. She proposed a separate limited series, and at the time was initially doubtful that Marvel would approve what she considered a "radical" idea concerning "why the very existence of the universe depends on the health and well-being of Galactus."2000s
The consequences of Galactus' death are explored in the issues Fantastic Four Annual 2001 and Fantastic Four #46–49 written by Jeph Loeb and culminate in Galactus' revival, bringing resolution to Simonson's cliffhanger from the Devourer story arc. The character features in the first six issues of the limited series Thanos, written by Jim Starlin. Issues #7–12, written by Keith Giffen, introduce the Fallen One, who is retroactively presented as Galactus' first herald.Galactus' origin is re-examined in Fantastic Four #520–523, in which the character is temporarily reverted to his mortal form. After appearing in the limited series Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill #1–6 Galactus was a central character in the "Annihilation" storyline, appearing in the limited series Annihilation: Silver Surfer #1–4, Annihilation #1–6 and the epilogue, Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus #1–2.
Galactus was an antagonist in Fantastic Four #545–546, where he tried to devour fellow cosmic function Epoch. In Nova #13–15, the character had no dialogue. Author Andy Lanning said that he and co-writer Dan Abnett were "treating Galactus like a force of nature; an inevitable, planetary catastrophe that there is no reasoning with, no bargaining with and no escaping." Galactus also appeared in the limited series Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter #1–3, a sequel to Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill #1–6.