Whether you like that crazy shit Tom Hardy was doing in Venom or not, the fact is that movie was huge for Sony. A sequel to that is coming, but a further expansion of their Spiderverse continues before that with Morbius, and this will be a tougher task for them to pull off, even with Oscar winner Jared Leto playing the vampiric anti-hero. Good thing they'll have a little help from Kevin Feige and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Leto, who is coming off the least-liked take on the Joker ever, plays Michael Morbius, a scientist who accidentally turns himself into a vampire-like creature while attempting to cure a rare blood disease.
If there's a weird, offbeat role out there you'll often find Leto gravitating towards it, which makes him right for this. That said, Morbius is on the lower end of Spider-Man supporting characters, whereas Venom was very well-known. If this hits, Sony should be off to the races.
This is the first Sony movie that unquestionably links directly to the MCU, referencing Spider-Man (labeled a murderer following events of Far from Home), and even an appearance by Michael Keaton as the Vulture. It goes to show how far the relationship between Sony and Marvel has come since those brief, dark days when it looked like Spider-Man's future was up in the air. Remember that? It seems like a lifetime ago. Clearly, both sides have made up and have forged an alliance that should make all fans happy.
The film is directed by Daniel Espinosa, who last directed the sci-fi flick Life and had his biggest hit with Safe House. Joining Leto in the cast are Adria Arjona (6 Underground), Matt Smith (Doctor Who), Jared Harris (Mad Men), and Tyrese Gibson (Black & Blue).
Morbius hits theaters on July 31st 2020.
