Who is Morbius – Marvel’s Most Emo Vampire Explained
Morbius is Marvel’s ‘living vampire’ – what does that mean exactly?
After the C.C.A. lifted the supernatural characters ban, Dr. Michael Morbius was one of the first vampires to join the Marvel canon. He is a tragic, nearly noseless antagonist initially written for Spider-Man. Over the years, the ‘living vampire’ has become a bit more than that.
Created by: Roy Thomas and Gil Kane
First Appearance: The Amazing Spider-Man #101 (October 1971)
Morbius’ Comic Book Origins
Doctor Michael Morbius is a Greek Nobel award-winning physician born with a rare blood condition. He studied human and animal biology, eventually focusing on hematology and aiming for a cure. He used his extensive knowledge to treat his blood disease using vampire bat D.N.A. and electroshock therapy, but it came with unintended consequences.
The cure turned him into a pseudo-vampire with an overwhelming bloodlust. He transforms into a superhuman monster; when his thirst is quenched, he turns back into a human. Due to this transformation, he constantly grapples with guilt, remorse, and self-loathing.
He is Marvel’s most emo vampire.
Morbius has been an antihero, a vigilante, and a villain over the years. Due to his fluctuating state of existence, he’s a flexible character. As Marvel’s ‘living vampire,’ he’s battled Spider-Man, Blade, and the X-Men, among others. He’s also been a member of S.H.I.E.L.D. and A.R.M.O.R., fighting with the ‘good’ guys.
He got a reboot in the early 1990s with the Rise of the Midnight Sons story arc alongside the Nine. Johnny Blaze recruited him to stop Lilith, the Mother of All Demons, and her children from taking over the world. To remain a member, Morbius had to swear to only drink the blood of the guilty.
Powers & Abilities
Morbius’ experimentation has caused him to require blood to live, and he has an aversion to sunlight. While it didn’t turn him into a supernatural vampire, he does have superhuman strength, speed, and healing. He can turn others into ‘living vampires’ like himself through infection like a more traditional vampire. He can hypnotize lesser beings and bring them under his control.
Morbius also took on some of a bat’s physical characteristics and abilities. His bones are hollow, and he has the ability to fly and gains the use of echolocation. When in his monstrous form, he has a flattened nose, pointed ears, and a mouth full of fangs, as well as chalk-white skin.
He is not affected by garlic, crosses, silver, or holy water as a pseudo-vampire. While his skin is very photosensitive, he will not burst into flames in the sun. U.V. only diminishes his powers and can cause a wicked sunburn. He also cannot shapeshift, control the weather, or take over the minds of animals.
Morbius on the Screen
The character made an appearance in the first run of Spider-Man: The Animated Series (where he drank blood through his hands) and Ultimate Spider-Man vs. The Sinister Six. In that storyline, Doc Ock synthesized Morbius’ cure and created the vampire for HYDRA.
Sony announced a live-action movie in 2017 that adapted his original origin story and starred Jared Leto as Morbius and Matt Smith as an antagonist inspired by Hunger.
One of Marvel’s most compelling and conflicted characters comes to the big screen as Oscar winner Jared Leto transforms into the enigmatic antihero, Michael Morbius. Dangerously ill with a rare blood disorder, and determined to save others suffering his same fate, Dr. Morbius attempts a desperate gamble. What at first appears to be a radical success soon reveals itself to be a remedy potentially worse than the disease.
The movie was released in 2022 to overwhelmingly negative critical reviews, but audiences have embraced its campiness. It spawned a meme that triggered a misguided second release in theaters by the studio, which flopped.
After all of the jokes and controversy, the future of Morbius in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe is uncertain.
