Morbius may be considered among the worst movies to ever come out of the Marvel universe, but it's garnered quite a viral reputation. After several delays and a failed release, Sony's Spidey spin-off became a viral meme, leading to a re-release that once against flopped at the box office.
Even after most opted to skip out on Morbius as it underwent its theatrical run, many are now getting the chance to experience the movie for the first time as it debuts on Netflix. Since popping up on the popular streamer, the vampire blockbuster has dominated the service's top ten list.
As Sony opened the doors to a new corner of its Spider-Man spin-off universe, it introduced a number of Marvel characters into the fold, here are the key players.
Every Character in Morbius
1.) Dr. Michael Morbius (Jared Leto/Charlie Shotwell)
Jared Leto made his Marvel debut as the titular Dr. Michael Morbius - a genius who has suffered from a rare blood disease from a young age. After years in pursuit of a cure as director of Horizon Labs, Dr. Morbius finally uncovered a solution that utilized the DNA of bats, but ultimately turned him into a blood-thirsty vampire.
Charlie Shotwell tackles the role early in the film during a series of flashbacks to a younger Michael as he begins to understand his genius and condition while under the care of Dr. Emil Nicholas.
After his best-friend Milo also got hold of this cure, the two are forced to go head-to-head, leading to the death of his love interest and father figure. But even after all that, Morbius was approached to "do some good" by Michael Keaton's Adrian Toomes, setting up his Sinister Six future.
2.) Lucien Crown (Matt Smith/Joseph Esson)
Lucien Crown was the best friend and surrogate brother of Morbius but ultimately proved to be the primary antagonist of Sony's Vampire blockbuster. House of the Dragon and Doctor Who's Matt Smith played Crown throughout most of Morbius, while Joseph Esson tacked the role in childhood flashbacks.
Crown was the heir to a wealthy family who suffered from the same rare condition as Morbius, leading to his transfer to the medical care of Dr. Emil Nicholas. The two quickly became best friends and Loxias came to be known as Milo by Michael.
By the present day, Milo had become the primary benefactor of Morbius' research to uncover a cure to their condition. After taking the vampire-creating cure against the advice of the good doctor, Crown ultimately took a villainous turn and went on a killing spree that was put to a stop with his death at the hands of Morbius.
3.) Dr. Martine Bancroft (Adria Arjona)
Dr. Martine Bancroft was a scientist working alongside Dr. Michael Morbius in the search for a cure to his rare blood disease. Bancroft was the one to conduct the procedure on Morbius that led to his vampire transformation and eventually freed him from the captivity that allowed him to take his first life.
Having been knocked unconscious during the incident, Bancroft found herself comatose in the hospital. After she woke up, Morbius warned his love interest to stay away from Milo after warning her of his involvement in several killings, the two even shared a kiss.
Unfortunately, Milo went on to find and mortally wound Bancroft. Morbius found her only moments before death and fed on her blood afterward. Bancroft was last seen coming back to consciousness after the tragic event, appearing to suggest she may have garnered her own powers that ought to be addressed in the future.
4.) Dr. Emil Nicholas (Jared Harris)
Jared Harris stars as Dr. Emil Nicholas in Morbius. The scientist served as a mentor and father figure to both Michael and Milo, going on to assist the latter with his care later in life. After Nicholas became aware of Milo's killing he pleaded with him to stop, only to become his next victim.
5.) Simon Stroud (Tyrese Gibson)
Simon Stroud - played by Fast and Furious star Tyrese Gibson - was an FBI agent hunting Morbius for his blood-sucking killings throughout the film. Stroud previously served in Afghanistan and almost lost his arm, only for it to be saved thanks to a transfusion Morbius' artificial blood creation.
Stroud was originally planned to have a much longer arc in Morbius, one that would have seen him hunting the vampire doctor through a forest with a robotic arm and eventually face-off against Matt Smtih's Milo.
The actor stirred up some controversy in the build-up to Morbius' release as he claimed Sony's Marvel flick takes place in the MCU, a claim that was eventually debunked by the studio.
6.) Alberto "Al" Rodriguez (Al Madrigal)
Al Madrigal's Agent Rodriguez was the partner of Simon Stroud who assisted him and the FBI in their investigation against Morbius. Rodriguez was an original creation for Morbius with no apparent Marvel Comics connections.
Madrigal has discussed since release how his role was "butchered" in the editing process due to COVID-19. He also revealed his original hopes to have become the Agent Coulson of the SonyVerse but expressed doubts about that happening.
7.) Mr. Fox (Corey Johnson)
Corey Johnson's Mr. Fox was a mercenary who was hired and eventually killed by Morbius after his transformation into a vampire. Fox was the first to discover the newly-created vampire had broken free from constraints following a hostile conversation with Bancroft, before ultimately becoming Morbius' first victim.
8.) Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton)
Michael Keaton's Adrian Toomes, aka Vulture, crept his way into Morbius' post-credits scenes as Doctor Strange's Spider-Man: No Way Home spell unexplainably brought him across the Multiverse into a cell in the SonyVerse. Toomes has only previously appeared in 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming.
Having been released from prison, Toomes somehow got ahold of his famous Vulture wings and met up with Morbius in the hopes of forming a team. While Toomes was unclear how he swapped universes, the one thing he was certain of was that it had "something to do with Spider-Man."
Are Sony and Marvel Making Morbius 2?
After Morbius brought in only $163 million at the box office on a $75 million budget, before marketing costs, Sony likely came back at a loss on its third movie in it's Spidey spin-off universe. With that in mind, Morbius 2 is unlikely, despite Jared Leto's hilarious sequel teaser video, but that's not to say this story won't continue elsewhere.
With Keaton's Vulture assembling a team and Sony expanding its Marvel ventures, more crossovers down the line are inevitable. So, even if Morbius 2 was to never see the light of day, Leto could return as his vampire anti-hero in other movies alongside the likes of Vulture and Venom.
Morbius is available for purchase at home now and is streaming on Netflix in the United States and other limited regions.
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