Sony’s last attempt at building a shared universe didn’t go according to plan, with the disappointing box office performance and generally lukewarm reception to The Amazing Spider-Man 2 nixing any further outings, despite the studio hedging their bets in a big way by stuffing the story full of Easter Eggs and teases of things to come, as well as hiring Drew Goddard to write and direct Sinister Six along with announcing various other spinoffs including Silver & Black and Spider-Man 2099.
Of course, Spider-Man was rebooted shortly afterwards as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but the absence of their marquee hero hasn’t stopped the company from trying again. Venom surprised a lot of people after it raked in over $850 million globally, but next year could see the Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters sink or swim with the double whammy of Morbius and Venom: Let There Be Carnage.
It wouldn’t be unfair to say there hasn’t exactly been a ton of buzz swirling around Jared Leto’s upcoming blockbuster, though, with the first trailer grabbing headlines for the MCU connections rather than the footage itself, which all looked fairly pedestrian. Now, a new promo has finally arrived and it comes prefaced with the leading man dropping hints that Morbius is just one small part of a bigger mythology.
“In the film, I play a new Marvel character that attempts to cure his lifelong blood design with experimental science. In the process, I turn into a living vampire. That’s a little bit about what’s going on, and I think it’s going to be a fun one and I can’t wait for you guys to see it. It’s an exciting role in an expanding universe, there’s a lot for us to look forward to.”
Sony have put a lot of eggs in the SPUMC basket already with Ray Donovan and Luke Cage writer Cheo Hodari Coker scripting Nightwatch, J.C. Chandor circling Kraven the Hunter, S.J. Clarkson set to direct a Madame Web spinoff, Arrowverse co-creator Marc Guggenheim developing Jackpot and Olivia Wilde signed up for what’s believed to be Spider-Woman, but if either Morbius or Venom: Let There Be Carnage bombs, it could be game over once again by next summer.