Moon Knight: Who Is Marvel’s Mysterious New Avenger?

Nick Davis

Recently we had Disney+ Day which is a corporate holiday celebrating the streaming service by giving subscribers some exclusive things to watch. One of those things was a massive teaser trailer confirming a huge lineup of new Marvel shows coming to Disney+. It’s now known which new characters will be making their debut in the MCU in 2022. They are She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel and Moon Knight. Let’s talk about Moon Knight today because he has a long history in the comics. He has a lot of potential to introduce some strange behavior to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Who Is Moon Knight?

Moon Knight is Marc Spector. He is a former mercenary who becomes a heroic vigilante after a near-death experience. Marc claims to have been resurrected from death by an Egyptian moon god named Khonshu. He becomes the dark-bound Moon Knight at the behest of this deity. Sound strange enough? It gets even weirder.

Moon Knight has dissociative identity disorder. This is a mental health issue he uses to his advantage by infiltrating different social circles as his different personalities. It can also serve as a great disadvantage as he has trouble maintaining his understanding of reality. Many of Moon Knight’s comic stories revolve around him not being entirely certain what around him is real and what’s not. It makes his story a psychological horror as much as it is a superhero story.

His Role In The MCU

His powers are vague. Mostly he relies on athletic ability and a number of moon-themed gadgets at his disposal. But also his strength and other abilities appear to fluctuate based on the cycles of the moon. It’s unknown at this time what his exact powers will be in the MCU.

In the short teaser for the series we got on Disney+ Day, we see these mental health issues coming into play. All we hear Moon Knight say is “I can’t tell the difference between my waking life and dreams.” Spooky. Dissociative identity disorder is a very real mental health issue that affects thousands of people around the world. So hopefully the show can approach this concept with empathy and class.

Moon Knight has been around in the comics since 1975. He’s had stories with pretty much every major Marvel character one can think of. Spiderman, Captain America, the X-men, Echo (recently introduced to the MCU in Hawkeye), and much more. He’s been an Avenger in the comics and he’ll surely make an appearance in a future Avengers movie.

A shot of Oscar Isaac as Marc Spector from the teaser

The Actor Behind The Character

Marc Spector is being portrayed by Oscar Isaac. Ever an actor for the nerds, fans have previously seen Oscar as Apocalypse in X-men, Poe Dameron in the newest Star Wars trilogy, and most recently as Duke Leto Atreides in the sci-fi hit of the year Dune. There’s no doubt he’ll bring that same wonderfully geeky energy to this role as well.

An exact date of release is yet to be announced for the series. All fans know is it’s coming in 2022 and there will be 6 episodes.

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