Being introduced as a mostly standalone MCU series, Moon Knight has taken its fair share of risks with the debut of Oscar Isaac’s Marc Spector and his many personalities, but it seems to have once again paid off big time for Marvel Studios with the series premiere episode having the second-highest debut viewing figures for an MCU show behind current ratings leader Loki. This puts it ahead of recent shows like Hawkeye and the first MCU TV series WandaVision.
Moon Knight’s arrival last week pulled in 1.8 million households within its first five days, quite a way behind Loki with 2.5 million but some way ahead of last year’s Hawkeye, which pulled in 1.5 million. It is another sign that whether Marvel Studios base their shows slap bang in the middle of the intricately unfolding narrative of Avengers and multiverses or create something that has very little (current) connections to anything that has come before, fans are very much on board with whatever they are doing.
While the new figures come from SambaTV, which records viewer numbers on around 3 million homes in the U.S., are not conclusive of the completing viewing public, they are a good gauge of how shows compare to each other before more detailed information becomes available later down the line. As the figures are always coming from the same selection of viewers, then it gives a very good idea of what is turning those people on to certain platforms and what is turning them off.
Moon Knight has Pitched Itself as a Different Kind Of Marvel Series.
Although Oscar Isaac is only signed up for the current season of Moon Knight, due to the changes in Marvel Studios’ contracting, it is hard to see any reason why he would not be reprising his role as the supernatural character again. Although director Mohamed Diab has expressed his wish to see Moon Knight appearing in the next decade of the MCU, the series is actually pitched as something unlike any other MCU property so far.
With a deep story to tell, an antagonist with many personal demons to overcome and a much darker tone than previous shows on Disney+, Moon Knight has made sure to set itself apart from the other stories currently ongoing. It has very little connection to the wider MCU world right now, but as fans already know, characters and events that are new and unconnected now will become integral parts of the narrative later down the line.
The first deeper connections could come in the Werewolf by Night Halloween Special, which some reports have suggested will be released as early as this October. While that is still to be confirmed by Disney+, the special is in production and will feature a character that has crossed paths with Moon Knight on several occasions in the comics. Of course, Doctor Strange has also had his fair share of connections to Marc Spector, including being part of the Midnight Sons team up with several other darker Marvel characters. While there is much to be speculated about, fans can currently catch new episodes of Moon Knight every Wednesday on Disney+.