Warning: MAJOR spoilers ahead for Morbius.
Morbius’ ending and Marvel movie future explained in detail. Venom kicked off Sony’s Spider-Man Universe in 2018, launching a franchise that had a loose connection to the Marvel Cinematic Universe — namely, ties to Spider-Man that have more firmly been established following the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Directed by Daniel Espinosa from a screenplay by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless, Morbius gets to the core of the character by following his origin story. Played by Jared Leto, Morbius becomes a Living Vampire after injecting himself with a serum — spliced with vampire bat DNA — meant to cure his blood disease. The film lives in the same universe as Venom, who is referenced by the FBI agents hunting Morbius for killing a slew of mercenaries when he first turned.
Morbius ends with a few character deaths and two mid-credits scenes that set up the future of the character. After defeating Milo (Matt Smith), Morbius finishes things off by meeting with a figure who was last seen battling Spider-Man. There’s a lot to dissect with regards to Morbius, so we break down the film’s ending, what it means that Martine is now a vampire, how the Living Vampire could return, and more.
Morbius Vs. Milo’s Abilities - Differences Explained
Michael Morbius tests out his various abilities throughout the film. He’s agile, can heal quickly after a fight or a fall, he’s incredibly strong, can fly, and is able to use bat echolocation, a biological sonar, to find who he’s looking for no matter where they might be. Milo has the same abilities as his brother because he took the serum Morbius did. However, Milo doesn’t get to show off these superhuman traits as much because he takes the serum after Morbius does, which gives the latter a bit of an advantage for a while. The biggest difference in the pair’s abilities is how long they last. Because Milo has no problem feeding on human blood while it’s still pulsing through their bodies, he is stronger for a lot longer, constantly feasting on the nearest human to continue that kick. He’s able to walk, leap, fly and his skin has a healthier glow for longer because Milo isn’t beholden to the limited effects blood bags have. Whereas the Living Vampire intakes one or two blood bags at any given moment, shortening the window of time he has (from six to four hours) to employ his new skills, Milo is powerful all of the time because he never stops killing for blood.
Martine Becomes A Living Vampire - What It Means For Her Future
Martine Bancroft was one of Morbius’ supporters throughout the film. A doctor who was also (very briefly) romantically involved with the Living Vampire, Martine met her fate when Milo went after her to draw Morbius out into the open. Milo kills Martine and it seems like that is the end of the road for her. However, Martine is bitten by Morbius and, unbeknownst to him, wakes up as a Living Vampire herself. Unlike Morbius and Milo, Martine becomes a Living Vampire after being bitten, so the side-effects of her new condition might be different. Martine doesn’t have a blood disease, so it’s likely that she doesn’t need to rely so heavily on feeding to keep up her strength, but she will surely have the same blood lust that Morbius and Milo have.
If Morbius gets a sequel, Martine’s story could be further expanded on. She might be angry that Morbius didn’t give her a choice in becoming a vampire. In the comics, she is wholly dedicated to him and wants to live out their days together as immortal beings. Martine in Morbius is a bit more grounded and level-headed, so it’s possible she will need time to process what’s happened to her and how that affects her own work as a doctor. In the comics, Martine tends to ally with various characters, including FBI agent Simon Stroud, who is on the hunt for Morbius. A sequel could see Martine have a separate storyline involving other characters before joining Morbius for whatever comes next.
How Morbius’ Post-Credits Scenes Sets Up A Sinister Six Team-Up
In Morbius’ post-credits scenes, Adrian Toomes (aka, Vulture) appears in an empty jail cell after the multiverse breaks open (thanks to Spider-Man: No Way Home) and transports him there. After getting out of jail, having committed no crimes in the world of Morbius, Vulture sets up a meeting with the Living Vampire. He tells Morbius that people like them — presumably ones with gifts — should team-up, blaming Spider-Man for being dropped in on another world. Though Morbius doesn’t know who Spider-Man is and has no reason to trust Vulture, he seems eager to work with the wing-suited villain.
With the introduction of Venom, Morbius, and the return of Spider-Man villains like Green Goblin, the post-credits scenes suggest Sony is gearing up to do a Sinister Six team-up at some point soon. It’s the only explanation for why Morbius included Vulture at all, especially considering that he didn’t have an impact on the film’s main plot. The Sinister Six — which includes a rotating villain line-up — is a group of supervillains that go up against Spider-Man at various points in the comics. Between the MCU and Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, the introductions of several Sinister Six villains, including Mysterio, have already happened. With Vulture and Morbius officially meeting up and a mention of Spider-Man, Morbius seems set on building towards that villainous team-up. The puzzle pieces are all there.
Why Does Vulture Meet With Morbius?
Beyond the attempts to string together a Sinister Six tease, Vulture’s meeting with Morbius doesn’t really make all that much sense. It’s unexplained and Morbius’ reasons for accepting the invitation make even less sense. Vulture mentions that they should team up because they both have abilities and are outsiders to their society. For Vulture, that might be enough to seek out someone he feels is like him; Adrian must have done some research ahead of time before calling on Morbius, especially after seeing the lengths the doctor had gone to save himself from an incurable disease. Perhaps Vulture wants to find a way back to the MCU and seeks out the ambitious, capable Morbius to do so. What’s more, Vulture sees Morbius as very powerful.
If Adrian wishes to go after Spider-Man as revenge for what happened in Spider-Man: Homecoming, as well as for the split in the multiverse, then of course he would find the one person powerful enough to help him exact his revenge. Morbius’ reasons, however, are a bit less clear. The Living Vampire may have killed Milo to stop him from harming others, but Morbius never indicated that the scientist was trying to do anything but help. His motivations didn’t really shift and he never became a villain, so to tease the Sinister Six before Morbius fully transitions into a bad guy suggests he doesn’t think Vulture’s motivations are necessarily, well, sinister quite yet.
Morbius Could Fight Garfield’s Spider-Man, Not Holland’s
Back in December 2013, a Sinister Six movie was announced by Sony as a part of The Amazing Spider-Man universe. The film was to be a spinoff that included Doctor Octopus and Kraven the Hunter as adversaries to the web-slinging superhero. However, the film was ultimately scrapped. Since the Sinister Six movie was meant for Andrew Garfield’s iteration of Spider-Man, and since Tom Holland already fought several villains in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Morbius and Vulture could fight Garfield’s Peter Parker instead. It would give the web-slinger a chance to fight the villainous group as initially intended, and it would make sense now that Vulture is no longer in the MCU proper. Garfield’s Spider-Man got to have a redeeming moment in Spider-Man: No Way Home and it would be worthwhile to watch this version of the superhero go toe-to-toe with the Sinister Six if Sony finally goes that route.
Morbius’ Future Explained - Will There Be A Sequel?
Morbius leaves off on a couple of cliffhangers — Martine waking up as a vampire and Vulture joining forces with the Living Vampire. Furthermore, the ending of the film doesn’t give Morbius any time to process the fallout with Milo and the deaths that occurred. Such storylines could be further explored in a sequel, but Sony has not confirmed there will be a Morbius 2 as of this writing. The studio might wait to see how the film fares at the box office, but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been discussions regarding Morbius appearing alongside other Sony and Marvel projects.
Marvel and Sony producers Kevin Feige and Amy Pascal, respectively, have teased the potential for Morbius to appear in a film alongside Blade, who is getting his own MCU film. With the multiverse being formally introduced, there is an opportunity for Morbius to crossover and work with other established characters, including Venom and Spider-Man. Of course, a potential Sinister Six movie could also see Morbius’ return to the big screen. Even if there isn’t a Morbius sequel, the title character could continue existing within Sony’s Spider-Man Universe and the MCU.
