The MCU Just Beat Raimi's Horror Record Before Doctor Strange 2

Warning: This article contains spoilers for episode 4 of Moon Knight.

Sam Raimi's MCU directorial debut with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was set to be the franchise's first venture into true horror, but that record due to him has just been nabbed by Moon Knight. Kevin Feige promised that Moon Knight would be unlike any other MCU project, particularly in how brutal it is. This was certainly proved in the first 3 episodes, as Marc is a trained mercenary, and therefore the fight scenes have definitely been bloodier and more grisly than any others in the MCU. However, Moon Knight wasn't expected to have a touch of horror to it, as that was supposedly reserved for Multiverse of Madness.

Raimi's speciality lies in horror, proven by the highly successful Evil Dead franchise. Elements of typical horror can even be seen in Raimi's Spidey trilogy, like the iconic Doc Ock operation scene in Spider-Man 2. Now, with the trailers for Multiverse of Madness featuring zombified versions of heroes, monsters, and heaps of blood, the film seemed set up to be the MCU's first exploration of horror, which would have given Raimi that very specific record. Yet, Moon Knight episode 4 just took this record with one frightening scene.

The majority of Moon Knight episode 4 takes place in an Egyptian tomb, which makes it ripe for horror happenings and mummified encounters, and that is precisely what transpires. As Layla and Steven find the tomb of Ammit's guardians, Heka priests, it seems not all of them are truly dead. Whilst they explore the tomb, gunshots are heard offscreen, and footsteps draw near to them. Layla and Steven hide as one of the undead guardians enters, dragging one of the villain Arthur Harrow's goons behind him before placing him on a blood-soaked slab. The scene seems to be Marvel's take on the classic Universal monster flicks, and it delivers spine-tingling horror weeks before the release of Multiverse of Madness.

The offscreen gunshots, mangled cries of terror, and heavy approaching footsteps of a mysterious silhouette are true tropes of horror, and executed wonderfully. Leaving the audience, and Steven and Layla, in the dark about what is coming builds up the tension for the next gruesome scene where the undead guardian punishes Harrow's goon for his trespassing. There is no background music or score to drown out the sounds of knife slicing skin, or the gurgling masses of blood coming from the body (ironically, like a Raimi horror movie,) showing that the MCU really isn't holding back from exploring the horror genre in full force. The camera doesn't shy away from showing the undead warrior slopping the goon's organs into jars either, showing just enough to make the moment stomach-turningly gruesome. When the creature discovers Layla and Steven hiding, its movements fluctuate between creepingly slow and lightning-quick, so its next move is unpredictable. Its hands creep and crawl up beneath the floorboards on which Steven is standing on, and then in the next scene, it appears so quickly to grab Layla into the darkness that it can most definitely classify as the MCU's first jump-scare.

In such a short scene, Moon Knight hits so many classic horror staples; the screams of terror, the protagonists hiding from the monster, the classic jump-scare, and so it definitely counts as the MCU's first experimentation with horror. Raimi's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will most likely also touch on some of these elements, and specifically still be the first MCU film to feature horror front and center. However, the terrifying tomb scene in Moon Knight has just beaten it to the record.

Next: Moon Knight's Gods Support Huge Doctor Strange 2 Villain Theories