Actor Matt Smith has recently shared why he ended up agreeing to play the infamous villain, Loxias Crown (a.k.a. Hunger), in Sony’s upcomingSpider-Manspinoff film,Morbius. Smith will be starring alongside Jared Leto, who has been cast as the main character, Dr. Michael Morbius.
Rather than Morbius fulfilling the traditional stereotypes of a superhero, it seems as though his character will resonate much more with audiences as an anti-hero. Leto will inevitably be going up against Smith’s Loxias Crown in theSpider-Manspinoff film, however, given that the lines of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ aren’t explicitly drawn in the sand, this leaves room for an element of surprise for fans and an even more complex dynamic between the two when they finally do face one another. While more seems to be known regarding Morbius' duality in his persona, much is still hidden regarding how exactly the Crown will be portrayed in this film rendition. Going back to the original source, throughouttheMorbiuscomic books seriesCrown is summarized as intentionally turning himself into a vampire while conducting various experiments on Morbius.
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Most oftheMorbiustrailerfocuses more on the titular character rather than Crown, but it’s evident that he has killer tendencies - posing a major threat to not only Morbius but the general public as well. The trailer alludes to Crown’s ultimate desire to wipe out and destroy the entire human population. Now, in a recent interview withScreen Rant, Smith has revealed what initially drew him to the complex character of Crown, and he even drops a few hints in regard to what fans can expect from the upcoming film. Smith stated, “I’ve always been obsessed with vampire films, frankly, and the mythical power of them. The idea that this was a superhero monster movie, I was really interested in. Great director, really fabulous cast attached to it. I was interested in the idea of being able to fly and kill people, all that sort of stuff.”
Smith is spot on in his testament to just how uniquethe world ofMorbiusis when it comes to the general theme of superhero films.Morbiusis a rarity in that it combines the mythical with the conventionality and responsibility that comes with being a proclaimed hero. The brand-new film from both Marveland Sony follows the story of a biochemist who accidently becomes a vampire after trying to cure himself of a rare, blood disease. Brief glimpses of the trailer do hint that the film will be much darker in tone, taking inspiration from more classical horror elements.
It will be tapping into horror themes while also exploring the genre of action and adventure. While Smith is not new to tacking on the role of the traditional villain, it seems as though his character, Crown, is anything but a cliché. After all,Morbiuswill be the very first filmto give Smith the opportunity to fulfill his long-time dream of playing a flying, blood-sucking, death-wishing vampire.
Morbiusis set to premiere in theaters on April 1st, 2022.
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