'Loki' Just Set Up the Vampire Problem 'Blade' Will Have to Solve
The following story contains minor spoilers for Loki Episode 4, "The Nexus Event."
Vampires were referenced for the first time in the MCU in Episode 4 of Loki.
This is likely a wink to the upcoming Blade movie, but it could also be pointing toward Morbius.
It's reminiscent of the MCU's first reference to Doctor Strange, which came years before that movie's release.
There's a lot of stuff in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Armored battle suits. Super soldiers. Scientists who turn into raging green beasts. A literal norse god who can summon lightning. A talking raccoon; a guy who becomes the size of an insect; a woman who spends time zipping around the galaxy. And those are just some of the good guys.
But one thing the MCU hasn't introduced into its world—until now—is vampires. That's right: blood-drinking, silver and garlic-fearing vampires. Episode 4 of Loki, titled "The Nexus Event," changes that. And this small reference is more than just a throwaway line—it's likely a reference to the future in-universe reboot of Blade, which will star two-time Academy Award-winner Mahershala Ali.
The Loki plot has progressed to the point where the Time Variance Authority has both Loki and Sylvie/Lady Loki in its custody. And given that we've been on quite the journey to this point (Episode 4 of 6 total in the series), Agent Mobius (Owen Wilson) is starting to really see the big picture around this investigation. So much that he's begun to think about how this case compares to others in his past.
"You know, we brought in Kree, Titans, Vampires." Mobius says. "Why is it the two orphan Demigods are such a pain in the ass?"
It might seem like just a throwaway line, but consider the other types he mentions. Kree are prominent in the MCU already: that's people like Ronan the Accuser from Guardians of the Galaxy and Yon-Rogg and company from Captain Marvel. One Titan we're all familiar with, of course, is Thanos—of Thanos The Mad Titan, snap his fingers and eliminate half of all life fame. That leaves Vampires, which we haven't seen yet—but will.
While it's not the hugest hint or tease, the mere mention of "vampires' for the first time in the MCU is reminiscent of the way that the name of one of Marvel's most major heroes—Doctor Strange—was teased for the first time, back in 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
In a scene where S.H.I.E.L.D. traitor Jasper Sitwell was spilling the beans on what was really going on with the evil Project Insight, he told Steve Rogers who the murderous HYRDA project would be targeting.
"You, a TV anchor in Cairo, the under Secretary of Defense, a high school valedictorian in Iowa City, Bruce Banner, Stephen Strange, anyone who's a threat to Hydra!" he told Cap, not long after being pushed off a building by Black Widow and saved from certain death (which would wind up coming his way not too long afterwards anyway) by Sam Wilson.
Of course, this single line reference to Stephen Strange doesn't make a ton of sense, considering at this point in the timeline Strange would've just been a New York City surgeon, and not the Sorcerer Supreme quite yet. But still, at the time it was a huge treat for Marvel fans just to know that the good doctor was on the way—and about two-and-a-half-years later, Doctor Strange made its debut on big screens. (If you want to dive even deeper, some think the "TV anchor in Cairo" could be a reference to Moon Knight, which has roots in Egypt. That would be quite a far-out reference—we'll see when that series drops on Disney+ next year.)
Meanwhile, in the time since Winter Soldier Marvel may have even become more guarded in its projects. The "vampires" reference would seem likely to tie in most directly with the Blade movie, which will be fully set in the MCU. While its been announced that the new Blade will be written by playwright and Watchmen writer Stacy Osei-Kuffour, nothing more has been announced with regards to casting or release date, so we don't quite know when we're going to get our first look at Mahershala Ali as the iconic Daywalker.
However, a sooner look at vampires in the MCU could be on the way. Morbius, starring Jared Leto in the titular role, is another villain story—like Venom—set in Sony's Spider-Man universe. And while this is not a definitive MCU movie, the trailer featured Michael Keaton as Adrian Toomes/Vulture, the incarcerated villain from Spider-Man: Homecoming. It's not known if this will definitively tie into things, but it's certainly a possibility; remember, when it was uncertain if Sony would pull the Spider-Man rights from the MCU, the studios came to another agreement. It's possible this included integrating characters like Morbius and Venom into the MCU's larger web. Morbius is scheduled to hit theaters in 2022.
For now, only time will tell which blood suckers Mobius had his run-ins with. And we'll see in a few years' time how our buddy Blade will manage to take care of them.
You Might Also Like
