The Living Vampire and Matt Smith's Milo will not be the only villains in Morbius. The film also features Adrian Toomes, a.k.a. the Vulture, played by Michael Keaton, who first portrayed the character in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Many were surprised to see Toomes in Morbius' teaser trailer, and fans began to speculate about how the flying villain made his way into the Venom universe.
We figured things would be cleared up with the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, which saw multiple characters from different universes transported into the MCU — including Venom. However, every misplaced individual (aside from a small symbiote piece) seemingly returned to their respective realities at the end of the film, making Toomes' appearance in Morbius all the more puzzling. With the existence of the multiverse, though, it was assumed the character was simply a variant.
Now, we know that's not the case. The Vulture in Michael Morbius' standalone adventure is the Adrian Toomes we met in Homecoming. Morbius director Daniel Espinosa gave an interview to CinemaBlend, where he was asked if Vulture was the same one introduced in the MCU, to which he replied, "Yes."
When asked how that was possible, Espinosa stated that the potential for characters to travel to universes that weren't their own (and staying there) was established in No Way Home:
"At the end of Venom: Let There be Carnage and Spider-Man: No Way Home, and in No Way Home itself, it is clearly established that it is possible for characters to transfer from one Multiverse to another. The events of No Way Home had the effect of transferring Venom and Vulture (and maybe others) back and forth between the MCU and the Venom Universe."
The conversation continued with some spoilers from Morbius, so we will omit them from here.
As mentioned, everyone appeared to return home at the end of No Way Home. This may confuse some viewers since it apparently contradicts the possibility of Toomes staying in another reality. However, there is precedent for this. No Way Home's post-credits scene saw Eddie Brock and Venom sent back to their world, but not without leaving a tiny piece of the symbiote in the MCU. If the alien goo was left behind, it makes sense that it wasn't the only being misplaced, and that Toomes was one of the unfortunate people to be sent to a foreign universe.
This opens up some exciting possibilities for the future of both the MCU and Sony's Spider-Man Universe. Which characters from each franchise stayed in the other? It's an intriguing question, and hopefully one we won't have to wait long to have answered given the rapid pace at which Sony's superhero series is growing.
Morbius flies into theaters on April 1st, 2022.
What do you think about Vulture being the MCU version of the character? Where do you expect his appearance in the Venom universe to go? Let us know in the comments.