WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Morbius, now playing in theaters
Morbius nominally takes place in one version of the Marvel Universe, although it largely doesn't interact with many other iconic characters or elements outside of references and Easter eggs. But one of these little moments might have more importance to the future of the universe than some may realize.
Morbius uses The Daily Bugle repeatedly throughout the film's runtime to set up Spider-Man Easter eggs. The most intriguing is a mention of the Chameleon -- likely setting up some of the circumstances surrounding the character as he'll appear in the upcoming Kraven the Hunter film.
Throughout Morbius, there are few concrete connections to the larger Sony Spider-Man Universe. Simon Stroud (Tyrese Gibson) and Alberto Rodriguez (Al Madrigal) reference the events in San Francisco, confirming Morbius takes place in the same universe as Venom and Venom: Let There Be Carnage. But beyond that -- and the post-credits teaser, which introduces Michael Keaton's Vulture to the universe after he's left there following the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home -- the largest tie to the greater universe is the continued existence of The Daily Bugle. The newspaper is seen repeatedly throughout the film, with eagle-eyed viewers spotting a number of Easter eggs among the headlines, including teasing the existence of Rhino and Black Cat in this universe.
One of the most compelling, though, comes halfway through the film. Having gone on the run from the authorities and desperate to undo the transformation he's induced onto his body, Morbius hunts down his medical associate/love interest Martine Bancroft (Adria Arjona). Finding her on a bus, he convinces her to follow him to a coffee shop where they can discuss his plans to restore himself. During this sequence, a copy of The Daily Bugle can be seen with the headline "The Chameleon's Great Escape," suggesting that The Chameleon exists in this universe and is enough of a known figure that he features in news stories.
This sets the stage for The Chameleon to make his full cinematic debut. First appearing in Amazing Spider-Man #1 by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, the master of disguise is technically Spider-Man's very first super-villain. Dmitri Smerdyakov is a brilliant master of disguise, capable of impersonating almost anyone perfectly. He's been a member of numerous villainous plans over the years, including playing a prominent role in the Clone Saga and recently playing a part in Spider-Man's battle with Kindred during the "Chameleon Conspiracy" story-arc. Perhaps his most important villainous tie, though, is to Sergei Kravinoff, aka Kraven the Hunter -- with eventual revelations exploring their younger lives as half-brothers.
A character tangentially tied to Chameleon was briefly introduced in Spider-Man: Far From Home, but it appears that in the Sony Spider-Man Universe, the character is far more in line with his comics counterpart, at least enough to have openly earned the title of Chameleon. This means Chameleon could be something of a known villain to this world's version of Spider-Man, helping broaden the potential members of a possible Sinister Six roster. This likely plays into the announcement that Fred Hechinger will be playing Chameleon in the upcoming Kraven the Hunter film, but it seems he'll be a known figure in this world instead of just a minor secret player, setting up a potentially interesting position for the character to fill going forward.
Directed by Daniel Espinosa, Morbius is in theaters now.