After his turn as Joker in Suicide Squad, Jared Leto could have been satisfied with playing one of the most iconic comic book characters of all time. But in Morbius, Leto has an opportunity to portray a character who is both the hero and the villain of his own story. Dr. Michael Morbius may not be as famous as the Clown Prince of Crime, but Leto is able recently explained what drew him to the role in a new featurette from Sony.
In the video below, Leto also recaps Marvel’s origin of Morbius in broad strokes. After all, some of that material has to be saved for the final film. Regardless, the heart of Morbius’ comic book history remains intact in the movie. The antihero suffers from a rare blood disease that claims thousands of lives every year. He is very aware of his own pending mortality when he comes up with a cure that utilizes vampire bats. The good news is that the cure works. Unfortunately, the side effects have transformed Morbius into a living vampire.
What’s the difference between a living vampire and a regular vampire? Not a whole lot. Morbius’ abilities are essentially supernatural in nature even though he gained them through “scientific” means. But since he never actually died, there is still the hope that Morbius can find a cure for his current condition. First, Morbius will have to battle his newfound inner demons, as well as a treacherous “friend” who covets his powers.
When Morbius goes full vampire, he has a face only his mother could love. That said, Martine Bancroft (Adria Arjona) may be the one woman whose love can save him. She is his fiancée, but more importantly, she is also a scientist. On the opposite side is Loxias Crown (Matt Smith). Once, Loxias/Milo and Morbius were childhood friends. They even shared the same blood affliction. But now that Morbius has found his “cure,” Loxias will do anything to have it for himself.
Al Madrigal and Tyrese Gibson also star in the film as FBI agents Alberto Rodriguez and Simon Stroud, respectively. Morbius’ rampage has not gone unnoticed by the government, and it’s their job to bring him down any way that they can.
Daniel Espinosa directed the film from a script by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless. Morbius will haunt theaters on Friday, April 1.
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