There's no denying that the inaugural appearance of the "Fantastic Four," the group that defines super #squadgoals, at San Diego Comic-Con's Hall H was pretty darn fantastic. Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Bell and Toby Kebbell sat on a panel with director Josh Trank and writer Simon Kinberg and showed off footage from their new film.

Check out what we learned from the movie's panel, which Trank called "a monster tale, a transformation."

Teller had to do some heavy reading for the role.

"I think any time you’re playing a real person, and I’ve done it a few times, I consider Reed Richards very much a real person because there’s so much material out there," Teller said. "You kind of want to cypher through a little bit. Josh was sending me all these books like 'Quantum Physics for Dummies.'"

Teller thought Spider-Man might have been his last shot at heroism. Think again!

"I kind of joked around a couple years ago saying I’ll do a superhero movie at some point and then Spider-Man came and went and I thought that was it," he said, then emphasized why "Fantastic Four" is going to be so awesome. "It’s cool, man. It’s not just people blowing things up."

Michael B. Jordan said playing the Human Torch is a "childhood dream."

Jordan stressed the story's deep roots. "You gotta respect the history and the legacy of the Fantastic Four, being Marvel’s first family and we tried to respect that as much as we could," he said. But it won't feel old, he stressed. "While also being something new, a modern version of a family. It’s pretty cool, I think you guys are going to enjoy it."

Kate Mara keeps it in the family.

"I’ve always wanted to be in a superhero film and what I loved about this one specifically was the family aspect of it," she said. "I also loved when I met with Josh the first time really not having known about the Fantastic Four and the origins of it all I really loved his idea for the origins of it all…really grounded and raw and probably darker than most people are used to."

Whereas for Jamie Bell, it's all about his pals.

"He has one friend who happens to be the genius Reed Richards who constantly gets him into trouble and usually gets him out of it," he said of his character. "He’s directionless. I think that certain events in the film, certainly the transition that we all go through and the abilities that we all have, Ben becomes the best version of a hero, which is one that looks out for his friends and protects his friends. He’s very much the muscle of the group."

And as for Dr. Doom...

Kebbell had strong feelings about the villain. "He’s the best villain of all time in any comic book ever," he said. "I think he is because we all think he is. He’s just led by ego. Reed Richards might be a little bit better than him, possibly, so I want to destroy him, and I will. It’s just that, it’s allowing your ego to run riot and be doom."

And it sounded like he might even be a little...jealous of his character? "The best thing about being a villain is you always find a twist so that you’re right. It’s a great way to live! I mean, if you’re a villain. Not in real life."

Sure, Toby. Sure.

"Fantastic Four" blazes into theaters August 7, 2015.