Morbius Director Compares Jared Leto’s Anti-Hero To Magneto & Wolverine

The director of Morbius calls the character an anti-hero and compares him to other Marvel characters like Wolverine and Magneto. Created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane in 1971, Michael Morbius is a doctor with a rare blood disorder who transforms himself into a creature who had abilities similar to a vampire, but since he was not undead or supernatural, he was given the moniker of Morbius the Living Vampire. The character will be played by Jared Leto in his own solo film.

Originally set for release in 2020, the film has been delayed multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic but is finally set to be released in theaters on April 1, 2022. The long years in development have left many wondering about Morbius’ place in Sony Pictures’ larger plans to create their own connected universe of Spider-Man characters, and if he would be an anti-hero similar to Venom or become a major villain in later films as his first trailer teased a possible team-up with Michael Keaton’s Vulture. Leto himself even teased a possible Sinister Six team-up during the promotional lead-up for Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Morbius director, Daniel Espinosa, recently called the character an anti-hero in the film’s promotional material. In Sony Pictures’ official Morbius production release, via The Direct, the director compared the character of Morbius to other anti-heroes like Wolverine, Magneto, Rogue, and Venom. The director hopes the audience’s fascination with anti-heroes will draw them to Morbius. The full statement can be read below:

“Most great heroes are antiheroes. Most of us are resistant to accept that we are the chosen one, and Morbius is the same. The most interesting characters in the Marvel universe have always been those that have had one foot on each side: Magneto, Rogue, Wolverine, in his own way, Venom. All of these characters are the ones that are fundamentally the most fascinating for us as moviegoers and comic book readers.”

While originating as a villain of Spider-Man in the comics, Morbius did become an anti-hero and has been a member of various teams like the Midnight Sons and Legion of Monsters. While both Wolverine and Magneto are both anti-heroes to an extent, Wolverine does fall in the line of superhero a bit more as a member of the X-Men and Avengers. Magneto’s allegiance has shifted quite a bit in the comics over the years, but most general audiences would classify him as not only a villain but the main X-Men antagonist. Rogue probably offers the best point of comparison, as the character started out as a villain but became a hero, and that is likely what will happen for Morbius.

Morbius makes the second anti-hero in Sony’s shared universe after Venom, and rumors have it that the Spider-Man villain Kraven the Hunter will be turned into an anti-hero for his film. This could suggest Sony still has plans for a Sinister Six movie like they had back in 2016, but will unite their various anti-hero characters together in a team and use Sinister Six as the name to indicate these are not typical superheroes. While nothing is officially in place as of yet, Sony Pictures is thinking of keeping this franchise going for a while, and Morbius is just one small piece in a larger whole.

Source: The Direct

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Richard Fink
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Richard Fink is a news writer for Screen Rant. He graduated from Arizona State University in 2016 with a degree in Film and Media Production. He loves the finer things in life, like cold Diet Coke on a hot summer day. Richard is a fan of all things Star Wars, Marvel, DC, and Film History.

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