The COVID-19 pandemic has forced movie studios to reconsider a ton of different release dates, with most films getting shuffled around as a result. According to a new report from IGN, Marvel’s Morbius film is another victim of shuffling, as Sony Pictures has pushed back its release one week.
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Initially set to come out on January 21, 2022, the film is now reportedly scheduled for release in theaters on January 28, 2022. Shifting release dates aren’t exactly a big surprise for Morbius, with Sony having moved the film around to a variety of different dates. At its earliest, the film was set to release in July of 2020, but as the pandemic continued, the film was forced back.
Originally Dr. Michael Morbius, the scientist tried to cure his rare blood disease only to become afflicted with a form of vampirism that gave him superior strength, fangs, and a taste for the red stuff. The character fought Spider-Man several times, though eventually earned several of his own books where he had a more heroic role. He has an ongoing feud with the character Blade the Vampire Hunter in the comics. The character previously appeared on TV in Spider-Man: The Animated Series and Ultimate Spider-Man vs. The Sinister Six and was originally earmarked to make his film debut in Blade until his cameo was deleted and plans to make him the villain in Blade II scrapped.
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Since he’s a Spider-Man character, Morbius is Sony’s adaptation of the Marvel anti-hero. Daniel Espinosa will direct the film with a script penned by Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama. Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona and Tyrese Gibson are set to star.