Sonyannounced yesterday that the horror-superhero movieMorbiuswill postpone it’s January 28th release due to the recent spike in COVID-19 cases. Originally scheduled for a summer 2020 theatrical release,Morbiusis now scheduled for April 2022.
Sony’sMorbius, made in association with Marvel, stars Jared Leto as Dr. Michael Morbius, a medical doctor inflicted with a strange illness that weakens his body and requires the use of crutches. Desperate for a cure, no matter how unconventional,Morbius accidentally infects himselfwith a new disease from bats. While his prior condition has miraculously healed, his newfound health comes with certain side effects like the ability to fly, super speed, sonar, a horde of bat sidekicks…and a thirst for human blood.
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Now, Sony has scheduledMorbiusto be released on Jul 21, 2025, the movie’s seventh announced release date.Michael Keaton is set to return as the Vulture, a villain previously seen inSpider-Man: Homecoming. Reshoots forMorbiusapparently included adding more Vulture scenes to the film. It is speculated, based on the post-credits scenes ofVenom 2and the little we have seen of the character in theMorbiustrailer, that Marvel, Sony and Disney have some plan afoot to unite Sony’s Spider-Man multiverse with Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe.
While moving a film about being infected by a bat virus off the summer 2020 theatrical slate makes sense for multiple reasons, public safety only being one of them, the decision to not releaseMorbiusin 2021 comes down to competition and bad timing. After theaters were still closed in summer 2020, the film was scheduled for release in mid-March 2021, almost a year to the date when many American cities initiated their first lockdowns. But in January 2021, after the American vaccine rollout began, it was moved again to October 8. Then, facing competition at the box office fromNo Time to Die, the postponed James Bond film that also featured a deadly virus plotline,Morbiuswas again moved, this time to January 2022. Now, with only four weeks left and the omicron variant raging, the film is rescheduled again for April Fool’s Day, 2022. Was this date chosen so if it has to be pushed again, Sony can play it off as a prank? Only time will tell.
ObviouslyMorbiusis meant to draw on classic vampire horror stories, and many fans are excited to see Marvel incorporate horror elements into a superhero film, but hopefully do it better thantheFantastic Fourbody horror mess. But the accumulation of postponed release dates combined with rumors of re-shoots as recently as last month do not indicate Sony or Marvel have confidence in their production. If the viral pandemic continues into the spring, do not be surprised to suddenly seeMorbiusdropped on a streaming platform with little fanfare.
Morbiusis scheduled to be released in theaters on July 31, 2025.
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