Jared Leto has recently opened up about the many vampire inspirations that helped him for his role in the upcoming film, Morbius. The new film by Marvel and Sony that tells the story of a biochemist named Michael Morbius (Leto), who accidentally infects himself with a form of vampirism while trying to cure himself of a rare blood disease.
Morbius is directed by Daniel Espinosa, while Leto stars alongside Matt Smith and Michael Keaton. Since the very beginning of their origin, vampires have been a fan-favorite and staple amongst the film industry as a whole. From the silent film era to modern day Twilight, audiences can’t seem to get enough of the wide versatility and magnetism that vampires possess within them. Now, it seems as though Marvel is adding even more to that extensive list, pioneering a new medium in film where superheroes and vampires can co-exist on screen. Marvel is definitely hopping on the vampire trend but in a more spooky, cryptic way.
The upcoming Morbius film is set to lean more into classic horror elements versus embracing stereotypical superhero tropes. The trailer has hinted that the film will be taking on a more anti-hero approach when it comes to the character of Morbius. In a recent interview with Screen Rant, Jared Leto described his own personal relationship to vampires. He also shared the different vampire films throughout history and how these interpretations contributed to his portrayal of Morbius. Leto stated, “You know, I’ve always loved vampires. I love the Anne Rice novels. One of the very first movies I ever saw was Dracula; that black-and-white Dracula. So I’ve always loved that."
Leto added that he was thrilled to take on the challenge of portraying a character who's not quite a vampire. "I love The Hunger with David Bowie, it was a great film not a lot of people have seen. For me, there’s something iconic about this opportunity," Leto said. "It’s one of the roles that you want to play, so it’s great to do a different spin. This isn’t exactly a vampire, but some of those qualities are there.”
Leto drawing attention to the fact that Morbius isn’t exactly a vampire is an important takeaway, as his depiction of vampirism has to be somewhat separate and simultaneously familiar to their traditional characteristics. This means Morbius is quite lost in his identity, not necessarily qualifying as mortal or immortal. Leto is quite known for his ability to transform both physically and mentally into whatever role he is playing - the great shape-shifter. Fans don’t have to wait much longer either to catch Leto in all his vampire glory.
Morbius is set to premiere in theaters on April 1st, 2022.
Source: Screen Rant