It’s True, We Will See Jared Leto As Morbius

Divisive. Polarizing. Argument causing. Yes, Jared Leto’s portrayal as the Clown Prince of Crime left some perfectly satisfied, while others completely baffled. I’ve watched Suicide Squad and at its completion, I wasn’t sure which side I belonged on. I like to say that I give people the benefit of the doubt at least once, sometimes twice. With Jared Leto’s Joker, I wanted to give him another chance but I couldn’t. It wasn’t because I was upset with his performance but rather the movie as a whole left something to be desired. 

It looks as though I may get another chance to evaluate him…for whatever that is worth.

As a part of their planned “Spider-verse” Sony is planning the inclusion of the Living Vampire, Morbius. It turns out that the once Clown Prince is in Sony’s radar to star as the nightwalker. Now, take this and the announcement of the movie and its actor for what it’s worth. Remember, the company has gone back and forth on another title (Silver and Black) already. In the instance of Silver and Black, the movie has moved release dates, changed directors, and done just about everything else humanly possible to delay itself. 

So who is Morbius?

Dr. Michael Morbius was a Greek Scientist who suffered from a terrible blood disease. To treat his illness, he developed a treatment that involved the use of vampire bats. Unfortunately, the treatment also came with most of the vampiric attributes that one might think. These include aversion to sunlight, the need to feed on blood, enhanced strength and speed, flight, and much more. Like the vampire lore often states, the victims of his bites would also turn into vampires. 

The inclusion of Morbius is an odd choice but one that I fully welcome. And even more so is the inclusion of Jared Leto as Morbius. 

And why? 

First, the world knows who Venom, Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus, and, of course, Spider-Man are. As movies become more and more popular, it’s fun to see those characters not as well know jump into the mainstream. Second, I’m anxious to see the take that Jared Leto will put on the character. His first jump into the comic book world was, as mentioned, polarizing. There is no denying that his acting abilities are second to none. He has more than proven that he is capable of doing just about any role, (Dallas Buyers Club, Suicide Squad, Blade Runner) and this leaves me eager to see what he does and whether it’s welcomed or not in comic movie round two. 

And, hey, if it is a colossal failure, at least he looks like Morbius.

What are your thoughts? What do you think of Jared Leto as Morbius?

Cheers,

Joel