Marvel and Sony’s Spider-Man spin-off Morbius has been climbing up Netflix’s streaming charts. The movie reached the platform in the US on September 9, and it’s already at number two in their Top 10 film list, only behind the Netflix Original film End of the Road.
Morbius stars Jared Leto as Dr. Michael Morbius, a scientist suffering from a rare blood disease. While trying to cure himself with an experimental new blood transfusion, he inadvertently becomes a vampire. But while Moribus wants to keep his monstrous side from emerging, his childhood friend Milo (Matt Smith) – who also gets the transfusion – has no such qualms about embracing his vampiric nature.
The superhero movie opened with a mediocre box office taking on April 1, 2022, drawing a worldwide total of $164 million. It also received several negative reviews from critics, calling out the poor post-credits scene and inconsistent story. The Total Film verdict was just two stars, branding it a "rote, lifeless, and cynical attempt to expand Sony’s Spidey-Verse".
However, despite this, the movie has seemingly remained popular with viewers. Morbius currently has a 71% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, compared to its 15% score with critics. Morbius has also inspired a cult following thanks to a barrage of memes circulating online, which even led Sony to attempt a re-release in cinemas.
Whatever you think of the movie, it’s no doubt a conversation starter. Check out our interview with Matt Smith about his dancing villain in Morbius, as well as our breakdown of the Morbius ending and its post-credits scenes.
