Morbius’ release date is rescheduled… again

Jared Leto was set to give the superhero universe another go (this time switching from DC to Marvel) with Morbius on January 28. But the movie’s release date has been changed to April 1, per Variety.

Morbius simply can’t catch a break. The flick was initially set to come out on July 10, 2020, but COVID ruined those plans. Then, the release date was changed to July 31, 2020—back when everyone thought this pandemic would be a short-term thing and not something that is unfortunately still going strong. The premiere date kept being shifted around to 2021 slots, first March 19, then October 8, until ultimately landing in early 2022. Now with the Omicron variant, it’s still not looking too good for Morbius, but April seems hopeful enough… for now, at least.

Much like Sony’s Venom movies, Morbius serves as an introduction to the pseudo-vampiric Spider-Man nemesis. As seen in the trailer released back in November, Morbius is a doctor with a rare blood disease who’s dedicated his career to finding a cure. But once he finally develops one, he gains superpowers—including a taste for blood.

The official logline for the movie reads:

Dangerously ill with a rare blood disorder, and determined to save others suffering his same fate, Dr. Morbius attempts a desperate gamble. What at first appears to be a radical success soon reveals itself to be a remedy potentially worse than the disease.

At least so far for its new premiere date, Morbius won’t be competing with any strongly anticipated blockbusters. As mentioned by Variety, the only other notable movies coming out that week are the Jo Koy and Tiffany Haddish-starring comedy Easter Sunday and the Chris Pine thriller The Contractor.

Venom has been successful for Sony, and there’s already another flick in the works for another Spider-Man foil, Kraven the Hunter (with Aaron Taylor-Johnson set to star)—so the stakes for Leto’s on-brand, creepy antihero are high.