Moon Knight Stripped Away The 'Wealth And Weaponry' To Escape Batman Comparisons
Hardcore "Moon Knight" fans might have felt disoriented when presented with Oscar Isaac's Steven Grant, who appears to be a mild-mannered everyman as opposed to the millionaire playboy alter-ego seen in the comics. And that was intentional: the Bruce Wayne-like aspects of the character were deliberately stripped away to escape the masked vigilante's (often tiring and unfair) comparisons to Batman.
The April 2022 issue of Empire magazine delves into the folds of this unique Marvel hero, what makes him such a compelling character, and the necessary changes made in the Disney+ show to help the hero carve an identity of his own. Here's how the strange, dark series attempts to do so.
The Rise of the (Vengeful) Everyman
It is understandable why the "Moon Knight" comic character has drawn comparisons to Bruce Wayne. After all, being the Fist of the ancient Egyptian god Khonshu, and raining bloody (really bloody) vengeance on those who wrong mankind often necessitates wealth and a plethora of resources. This leverage, or advantage, is, of course, rooted in privilege, although Marc Spector's wealth is earned as opposed to inherited (he invested his mercenary earnings to consolidate wealth over the years). Despite the marked differences between the two caped crusaders, people have made the comparison for years.
Head writer and executive producer of the "Moon Knight" series, Jeremy Slater, speaks about this comparison at length in the Empire interview, highlighting that the strengths of the complex, layered character lie outside of his comparisons to Batman:
"It was never a comparison I was interested in making. Batman has an 80-year head start on us: you're not going to beat Batman at his own game. We've seen that side of Moon Knight [in some comics] as a playboy philanthropist, throwing moon-shaped boomerangs, flying around in a moon-shaped plane, but I don't think that's the coolest possible version of the character."
Keeping Slater's perspective in mind, it makes sense as to why he pitched the series whilst stripping away the "wealth and weaponry" aspect of Grant's character. Instead, we get an anxious, mild-mannered everyman, who is suddenly plagued by otherworldly visions and a call that seems to crumble the very core of his identity.
"Moon Knight" premieres on Disney+ on March 30, 2022. More details about the nitty-gritties of Moon Knight as a character can be found in the April 2022 issue of Empire.