Morbius is set to star Jared Leto as the titular anti-hero, and many are wondering how they managed to bring the vampire to the big screen. Recently, Leto revealed the secret movie magic used to bring this character to the big screen.
Morbius follows the tragic story of the titular vampire, who is known for having run-ins with heroes such as Blade and Spider-Man. The trailer showcases a lot of action as well as a horror sub-genre that is placed throughout the film. The gothic theme is very prevalent in the trailers, as seen with the low light shots, dark outfits, and amount of shadows shown on screen. Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless wrote the script, having previously worked on films such as Dracula Untold and The Last Witch Hunter, which both have darker shots as well. Needless to say, the film is in good hands.
During an interview with The Direct, Leto and VFX Supervisor Matthew E. Butler both explained the process of bringing Morbius to life, which involved a mixture of makeup, prosthetics, and the same technology used for Josh Brolin's Thanos. "When you put a character on the screen for the first time, you have a big opportunity to create something. I was adamant from the beginning that we use technology to enhance and help with the transformation," Leto continues. "There’s limitless potential using some of these new technologies, so it’s interesting to be part of that and to push the envelope."
Butler, whose works include Ready Player One and Transformers: Dark of the Moon, went on to discuss the transformation referenced by Leto. "[He] can 'bloom' from his human version into the vampiric version and back again, so he’s not continually in that phase. He can go in and out - typically through anger. He needed to be able to morph into different expressions," Butler explained. This is where the marked array of dots and helmet camera came in handy, as this is how Marvel brought Thanos to life. "We decided that the actors would perform on stage, and we would recapture that performance with a marked-up array of dots on their faces and helmet cameras that can capture all of those subtleties... The software can translate that performance into the performance of a creature that is completely different. That’s something we achieved quite well with Thanos."
The world of comic book movies is a very expensive, to say the least. What it takes to bring these characters to life and emulate the world of comics is much more extensive than many would believe. It's impressive to see how studios bring these characters to the big screen. Even for the infamous vampire, they could've easily settled by taking the "easy route" and painting the actors skin, giving him colored contact lenses as well as fake teeth. Instead, they took the time to make Morbius look legitimate and scary.
Hopefully this will all pay off. Fans are in for a treat when Morbius hits theaters this upcoming April, and if it does well, then they can potentially expect to see more anti-hero/villain films. Sony has plenty of Marvel characters to choose from, whether they pick Kraven the Hunter or a different Spider-Man villain.
Morbius will be in theaters on April 1, 2022.
Source: The Direct