Morphing Into ‘Morbius’: How Jared Leto Sank His Teeth Into Marvel’s Vampire Anti-Hero

After multiple delays, Sony Pictures’ “Spider-Man” spin-off “Morbius” was finally released over the weekend. The third installment in Sony’s cinematic Spiderverse, which also includes the two “Venom” movies starring Tom Hardy, the studio has long teased a hard connection to the main Marvel Cinematic Universe.

K.J. Yossman Jacob Batalon is best known as Spidey’s BFF Ned Leeds in the box office-smashing “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” but he’s exploring his undead side in upcoming Syfy comedy drama “Reginald the Vampire.” In the series, based on Johnny B. Truant’s “Fat Vampire” novels, Batalon plays a recently turned vampire, Reginald, who finds he still has mostly the same problems as his living counterparts: an evil boss, unrequited love and a vampire chieftain out to get him.

Jordan Moreau SPOILER WARNING: Do not read if you have not seen “Morbius,” currently playing in theaters. This story discusses movie’s post-credits scenes.After nearly two years of pandemic delays, “Morbius” has finally opened in theaters, expanding Sony’s universe of Marvel characters and growing the web of Spider-Man villains getting their own origin stories.“Morbius” — starring Jared Leto as the biologist-turned-vampire from Marvel comics — was originally supposed to debut in July 2020, before “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The COVID-19 pandemic, of course, turned the world, and studio release calendars, upside-down, which is how “Morbius” wound up hitting theaters this weekend.

“Morbius” has arrived.As portrayed by Jared Leto, Morbius is a brilliant doctor who turns to the dark side after experimenting with bat DNA to cure a crippling genetic disorder. (You know, that old story.) After inadvertently becoming a creature of the night, he’s also forced to take down his surrogate brother, who has also taken the serum but become more Patrick Bateman than Peter Parker.

“Morbius” is no different, as the film sees Leto portray the Marvel comic character Dr. Michael Morbius, who is born with a rare blood disorder and seeks to cure it through the bite of a vampire bat.Originally slated to come out in January of 2022, “Morbius” was pushed back to its holding release date of April 1 due to the onset of the omicron variant of the coronavirus after the 2021 holidays. “Morbius” will take place in the same Sony universe of Marvel movies as “Venom” and “Venom: Let There Be Carnage.” But fans may be wondering how to watch “Morbius” — is the film streaming or only in theaters? All your answers below.“Morbius” opens in theaters April 1.No, “Morbius” is opening exclusively in theaters.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and Media“Morbius,” Sony’s latest attempt to extend its cinematic universe of Spider-Man villains and heroes, opened to $5.7 million in Thursday previews. The $75 million superhero film is on track to pull in $40 million in its first weekend of release. It’s a sign of just how much moviegoers love comic book fare.

Jared Leto stopped by “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” even though he “forgot” his shirt.

et voila!Running time: 104 minutes. Rated PG-13 (intense sequences of violence, some frightening images and brief strong language). In theaters.The issue is personal.

Sony is further exploiting its end of the Marvel franchise this weekend with the long-delayed Jared Leto dark hero title Morbius. Booked at 4,200 locations, the Marvel vampire protagonist feature is eyeing a studio expected opening of $33M, but could get as high as $40M-$50M.

Mip TV is just around the corner and, as ever, the content will be king. Deadline takes you through 15 of the best dramas set to light up the Croisette as the market returns in-person for the first time in three years. Read on for the best-in-class scripted projects heading to France.

Jared Leto hits the black carpet at the premiere of Morbius held at Callao Cinemas in Madrid, Spain on Wednesday night (March 23).

Sony’s Spider-Man: No Way Home snared a leading three trophies including Best Superhero Movie at the second annual Critics Choice Super Awards, which were announced today. Netflix’s Squid Game and Disney+’s WandaVision topped the TV field with three wins each. See the full winners list below.

Jared Leto has said that he doesn’t believe cinemas would have survived had it not been for the success of the Marvel films.The actor, who portrays otherworldly bloodsucker Morbius in the upcoming Marvel movie of the same name, said in a new interview that cinemas most likely still operate because of the draw such comic book films have on audiences.“If it wasn’t for Marvel films, I don’t even know if theatres would exist,” he told Variety. He admitted that he is “a bit of a snob when it comes to film” but that he’s worried about the financial health of the industry, and therefore thinks that superhero blockbusters need to be appreciated for the vital lifeline they supply.“It doesn’t seem like there’s room for everyone, and that starts to become a little heartbreaking,” he added, suggesting that he’s also cognisant of Marvel’s dominance.Elsewhere in the interview, the actor and musician said that he’d continue portraying the character in potential sequels.

EXCLUSIVE: After a breakout year that included starring roles in HBO’s The White Lotus and Euphoria, Sydney Sweeney is now ready to jump into Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters. Sources tell Deadline that she has joined Dakota Johnson in Sony Pictures’ Madame Web. S.J. Clarkson is on board to direct the pic. Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless penned the screenplay, with Kerem Sanga also penning a previous draft.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterJared Leto admits to being “a bit of a snob when it comes to film.”But in this week’s Variety cover story, the “Morbius” actor talked about his concern for the financial health of the entertainment industry.“If it wasn’t for Marvel films, I don’t even know if theaters would exist,” he says. “It doesn’t seem like there’s room for everyone, and that starts to become a little heartbreaking.”COVID-19 has only accelerated the moviegoing trend in favor of superhero spectacles and away from (mostly) everything else.

Manori Ravindran International EditorAmazon and Hulu have swooped for Syfy comedy drama “Reginald the Vampire,” starring “Spider-Man: No Way Home” star Jacob Batalon.The streamers have picked up the Great Pacific Media-produced show for select territories, while Cineflix Rights has come on board as international distributor and will be shopping the 10-part series at next month’s MipTV market in Cannes.Hulu has acquired second-window U.S. rights to the series — co-produced with Modern Story, December Films and Cineflix Studios — while Amazon has bought streaming rights in Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Tom Holland might have plans to take a break from acting, but he will have to go against Jared Leto’s manifestation abilities. Leto, who is starring as Michael Morbius in the upcoming film, Morbius, told Entertainment Tonight at the Critics Choice Awards he is manifesting a movie with the Spider-Man star. Morbius hits tears on April 1st, and Leto plays the biochemist-turns-vampire.

In its sophomore outing, Warner Bros/DC’s The Batman kept a firm grip on the international box office, dropping just 42% to add $66.6M from 76 offshore markets. That brings the overseas cume through Sunday to $224.7M for $463.2M global. As the Robert Pattinson-starrer heads to $500M worldwide this week, in like-for-like markets and using today’s exchange rates, it’s currently tracking 132% ahead of pandemic comp Godzilla Vs Kong and is 44% above Wonder Woman, 36% ahead of The Dark Knight and 24% over Justice League.