A brand new show set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is coming to Disney+. Moon Knight premieres on March 30 and stars Oscar Isaac in the titular role. The upcoming series looks absolutely epic in the trailers that have already been released. Moon Knight is a new entity to Marvel fans, and he has a very complicated history. Apparently, the show doesn’t have direct connections to other MCU projects like WandaVision and Loki, so it should be pretty easy for fans to jump into it. Below, we rounded up five key things to know about the character Moon Knight before the show kicks off.
1. Moon Knight suffers from dissociative identity disorder.
Moon Knight’s real name is Marc Spector. Marc is a Marine who becomes a mercenary. He goes by numerous identities (with different accents) since he suffers from dissociative identity disorder. After his life is saved by an Egyptian god, he receives powers and becomes Moon Knight. Marc/Moon Knight believes he’s meant to redeem his life of violence by protecting the innocent. But he struggles to keep his identities in check. He also takes on the persona of Steven Grant, a British museum gift-shop worker.
2. He was first introduced in 1975.
Moon Knight made his comic book debut in Marvel Comics’ “Werewolf by Night” #32, published in 1975. He was created by writer Doug Munch and artist Don Perlin. Moon Knight got his own comic series in 1980. As of 2022, there’s been nine volumes of Moon Knight comic books. Marvel is also releasing an anthology comic series called Moon Knight: Black, White and Blood to coincide with the Disney+ show.
3. Moon Knight is associated with the Avengers.
In the comics, Moon Knight has been involved with the Avengers. He was in the West Coast Avengers comic series in the 1980s. Other team members included Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and Jim Rhodes/War Machine. Moon Knight was also in the Secret Avengers comic series from 2010 to 2012 with Black Widow, Ant-Man, and more. Moon Knight even appears in some Spider-Man and Daredevil comics.
4. He’s been compared to Batman.
Moon Knight has been compared to Batman over the years. They come from different comic brands, and Moon Knight has dissociative identity disorder while Batman does not. But still, the two have numerous similarities such as their cover identities, detective skills, high-tech gadgetry, and costumes.
Charlie Huston, writer of the 2006 Moon Knight comic series, addressed the comparisons in a past interview. He explained that Batman “fights crime to avenge the murders of his parents,” while Moon Knight “beats up whoever has it coming because he believes he is the avatar of the Egyptian god of vengeance and it helps him to feel better about all the people he killed when he was a mercenary.”
5. Moon Knight makes his live-action debut on Disney+.
Moon Knight previously popped up in the animated shows Ultimate Spider Man vs. The Sinister Six and Avengers Assemble. But the Disney+ series is the first live-action appearance of the superhero. He’s being played by Oscar Isaac, who has also appeared in the Star Wars and X-Men franchises. The Moon Knight series also stars Ethan Hawke as cult leader Arthur Harrow, as well as Gaspard Ulliel, Lucy Thackeray, and May Calamway.
Moon Knight will consist of six episodes, with a new episode dropping every Wednesday on Disney+ starting March 30.