Morbius, the upcoming film by Sony Pictures starring Jared Leto as the titular Morbius the Living Vampire, has confused fans almost from the moment of its announcement.
Theories of whether it takes place in the MCU have abounded since a trailer depicted both artwork of Spider-Man with the phrase "Murderer" sprayed over it (a potential reference to Spider-Man: Far From Home) and a sequence featuring Michael Keaton, possibly as the Vulture/Adrian Toomes he played in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
These questions were compounded by recent statements by a star of the film, Tyrese Gibson, claiming the film had been moved up to an October release and was in fact a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Sony has apparently responded to Gibson's comments and clarified the status of the film.
MORBIUS NOT IN THE MCU, RELEASING JANUARY
Gamespot reached out to Sony to confirm Gibson's claims about Morbius. They have confirmed the film is still on track for its planned release "on January 28, 2022."
They've also reported, via their same Sony sources, that the film will be "part of Sony Pictures' Universe of Marvel Characters" alongside Venom and Kraven, and not in the MCU as Gibson stated.
MORBIUS STAYS WITH VENOM AND KRAVEN
While disappointing to many fans, this was always the most likely outcome. Despite the incredible success of their joint projects with Marvel Studios, Sony has been reluctant to allow the other characters for whom they have the rights to be tied to the MCU. It was never likely that Morbius, of all films, would be the one to bridge the gap.
How and why there have been so many questions regarding Morbius's place is puzzling. The initial trailer that got fans talking was released by Sony itself. Surely they knew the confusion it would cause. Gibson's comments caused such a stir precisely because there was already existing speculation about the film's connection to Spider-Man: Homecoming. Perhaps it was all an attempt to drum up a conversation about a project that lacks the sort of instant draw Venom had.
While Sony has spoken about a plan to bring Tom Holland's Spider-Man into their cinematic universe, there's been little revealed so far. While Morbius may provide more answers to that question, it's much more likely an answer could come in Spider-Man: No Way Home. If there was ever a time for the wall-crawler to transcend universes, it'd be in a film likely to feature the multiverse as a key story point.
For now, fans will have to wait. No Way Home swings into theaters on December 17, 2021, and Morbius will follow on January 28, 2022.
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