Matt Smith Responds To Morbius Flopping & Brutal Critical Response
Morbius star Matt Smith opens up about the film bombing at the box office and earning negative reviews. Morbius, which was released this April, was an attempt by Sony to expand their Spider-Man universe by exploring the wall-crawler's expansive rogues gallery. Dr. Michael Morbius, played in the film by Jared Leto, was a 1970's-era Spider-Man villain known as 'the living vampire,' and served as a way of bringing Marvel's flagship hero into more macabre and supernatural zones. The film sought to continue Venom's legacy by ensuring a franchise of Sony projects headlined by Spider-Man villains, and would lead to upcoming projects such as 2023's Kraven the Hunter and Madame Web.
The journey to the screen for Morbius, however, was rife with delays, thanks mainly in part to the COVID-19 pandemic. The film's release date was changed several times before Sony settled on an April 2022 premiere, hoping the comic book adaptation would find a large audience. Upon its debut, Morbius bombed at the box office, earned terrible reviews from critics, and was widely mocked in viral memes (which led to Sony's ill-advised decision to re-release Morbius in June). The name Morbius seems to be the current synonym for cinematic failure, and several involved parties are well aware of it.
Related: No Way Home & Morbius Proved The Spider-Man MCU Deal's Flaw
Now, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Smith, who played the villainous Milo in Morbius, broke his silence on the film in order to speak bluntly about its reception and failure. Smith, who is currently in the midst of a press tour for House of the Dragon, took a passive, reflective approach to Morbius, and made a mention of Sony's treatment of the film in contrast to other, more lucrative
Read more on screenrant.com
