Spoiler Warning: Morbius (2022)
After confirmation that Morbius does indeed take place in the Spider-Man universe, it is now the third film released for the SSU (Sony's Spider-Man Universe). Long before Venom and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, the SSU concept became in jeopardy of collapsing back in 2014. With the release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, the project didn't reach the numbers executives were expecting, leading to talks around scrapping the idea altogether. It wasn't until early 2015 when Sony had settled on a partnership with Marvel Studios, producing films that revolve around characters associated with the Spider-Man Universe.
The recently released film Morbius centers around Dr. Michael Morbius (Jared Leto), a successful doctor who has struggled with a rare blood disease since early childhood. Impairing his ability to walk, Dr. Morbius' health declines quickly as he becomes older. The Nobel Prize-winning biochemist then travels to Costa Rica with a team, in pursuit of obtaining these rare vampire bats, predominantly for their blood. After he completes the experiment, everything appears to be fine until his mental and physical state begins to evolve into something more dark and sinister.
With Jared Leto front and center of the action-packed motion picture, the hyper thirst for blood, combined with the superhuman abilities of Michael Morbius, is astounding to watch as the film later unfolds. Diving deeper and deeper into the plot, viewers see the clarification behind Morbius' classification as an anti-hero, as opposed to a standard villain, mainly because the villain side of him is deeply connected to his erratic, uncontrollable behavior.
Here are critical findings from the newest Marvel Comics adaptation that everyone should take away after viewing Morbius.
Dr. Morbius Didn’t Intentionally Become a Living Vampire
Marvel's vicious anti-hero did not go into his experimental process with the goal of becoming a monstrous vampire. While Michael Morbius learns that his rare blood condition is taking a turn for the worst, he sets out to hopefully find a cure that will save not only his life but the lives of those who are also diagnosed with similar conditions (i.e., his best friend Milo, as well as the patients he travels the world to treat). Desperate for a solution, Morbius takes blood from Brazilian vampire bats and mixes their blood with the human blood of his and Milo's (Matt Smith).
While the solution appears to have worked, at first, we later come to find that his experiment has turned him into a vampire who possesses bat vision, increased speed, and a quest for blood (basically, he turns into a human bat but more dangerous). As Morbius aims to make the transition from the distinct creature to his human self, he is primarily trying to figure out what is going on and how he can stop it. It's evident that he never wanted to be this villainess character. He just wanted to find a cure to his and Milo's childhood disease, which has proven to spread rapidly and grew to become more paralyzing with time.
The Groundwork for Spider-Man vs. Morbius
For most of the film, we notice various links to the Marvel universe, from the name-dropping of Venom to the opposition of The Avengers being referenced. While most Marvel fans know Morbius to be the infamous villain of Spider-Man, the film does, in fact, connect the holes between Spider-Man: No Way Home and Morbius together, indicating a possible showdown between the two in a future movie.
The first indicator lies in the appearance of Vulture, aka Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton). The next is found in a nearby symbol as Morbius is walking on the street. In the same frame, we see a poster of Spider-Man hung in an alleyway, with graffiti sprayed over it that reads "Murderer." This could possibly be a justification for a future head-to-head battle between the two characters.
Although general reviews have been mixed from long-standing and new Marvel fan bases alike, the latest installation of the Spider-Man universe undoubtedly brings new and refreshing subject matters to an already long-established franchise. As the character of Michael Morbius is brought to life (directly from the classic comic books), viewers see the complexity of his abrupt transition to the antagonist, identifying that he didn't set out on the journey to necessarily hurt anyone. His purpose in finding a cure for his disease was to help others ease their pain.
Regarding the connection between Morbius and Spider-Man, it seems pretty evident there is an intentional linkage to the characters, which would be an iconic film in itself if that ever happened. Who doesn't want to see Jared Leto go up against Tom Holland for a few hours straight?