Subjecting himself to a combination of electric shock therapy and exposure to vampire bat DNA, Doctor Michael Morbius turned himself into a "Living" Vampire. Created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane as a "tragic and sympathetic antagonist," the character has lived a tortured existence as he constantly tried to suppress his endless thirst. Throughout his comic-book history, Morbius has clashed with Spider-Man and vampire hunter Blade. Struggling to find acceptance, Morbius joined a variety of groups before concluding he was better off alone. In an attempt to prevent the suffering of more innocents due to his unnatural appetite, Morbius journeyed to various realms and encountered strange and deadly entities.

Following appearances in spin-off and self-titled comic series for 16 years, the character was revived in 1992 and given new powers such a hypnotism and limited flight. Each story attempted to delve deeper into Morbius' struggle to control his hunger and determination to escape from his darker nature. The character went on to make television appearances on Spider-Man: The Animated Adventures but had yet to star on the silver screen. In 2012, it was announced the Morbius: The Living Vampire series would be revamped by Joe Keatinge and Rich Elso,n which has now been teased at the basis for Sony Pictures' upcoming live-action film. In defense of the character, Keantinge revealed his belief that "Morbius isn't that bad of a guy..." though "his sins keep piling up, despite good intent." To elaborate on Morbius' dark past, CBR has compiled a list of facts everyone should know about the "living" vampire.

15 THE LIVING DEAD

Award-winning biochemist turned brooding bloodsucker, Doctor Michael Morbius was given vampiric abilities after a failed experiment to cure his fatal blood disease. Despite his enhanced powers, he is not an official member of the undead since they aren't supernatural in nature like a traditional vampire. Though he has fangs and pale skin, his aversion to sunlight is only because of his childhood condition and not because he is a damned creature of the night.

After the lab incident, Morbius gained superhuman strength and the limited ability to heal himself. He also gained increased speed and agility. However, he remains a victim of one of the worst vampiric traits: an unquenchable thirst for plasma.

14 THE FACE OF EVIL

Morbius' appearance was based on that of Jack Palance who was known for portraying the most intensely hated villains of the 1950s such as Jack Wilson in Shane and Lester Blaine in Sudden Fear. In various television films, he played sinister characters such as the Jabberwocky from Alice Through the Looking Glass, Doctor Jekyll / Mr. Hyde and king of the vampires, Count Dracula.

Artist Gil Kane, who designed Morbius, was inspired by Palance's high cheekbones and distinct jawline when drawing the living vampire. The actor also served as inspiration for Jack Kirby's Darkseid. He also inspired the villain Phil Defer in the 1956 French comic Lucky Luke contre Phil Defer.

13 BITING OFF TOO MUCH

First created as horror-based villain for Spider-Man, Morbius went on to have his own comic series detailing his tragic past and struggle to find a cure for his monstrous appetite. The character debuted in The Amazing Spider-Man #101 following a censorship update that had previously banned the inclusion of supernatural creatures in comic books.

Throughout his long comic-book history, Morbius became a victim of unresolved plot-holes. After turning into a vampire, Morbius attacks his childhood friend and assistant Emil Nikos and leaves him for dead. In Amazing Fantasy Vol 2 #17, a storyline regarding Nikos being found and turned by real vampires to seek revenge was never followed through. Also, the question of what happened to Morbius' victims after being bitten was never answered.

12 TOO SCARY FOR CHILDREN

On Spider-Man: The Animated Series, Morbius appeared as an academic rival of Peter Parker. In his self-titled episode, he is turned into a vampire after coming into contact with Parker's blood and being bitten by a vampire bat. The following episodes showed him battling Spider-Man and Blade, who often used his vulnerability to garlic to their advantage.

The depiction of the character was heavily altered by Fox, which sought to restrain Morbius' vampirism. Though the character was shown to have fangs, he was forbidden to bite anyone and was instead given suckers on the palms of his hands to drain his victims. Also, the word "blood" is never mentioned and is replaced with "plasma" in reference to Morbius' "feeding" off his prey.

11 AT EACH OTHER'S THROATS

Outside of the Spider-Man universe, Morbius and Blade's longstanding feud continued. Beginning in Adventure Into Fear #24, the vampire hunter believed Morbius was a space vampire intent on destroying Earth. During their fight, we learn Morbius can't be defeated by traditional vampire weapons like wooden stakes.

During his time as a member of the Nightstalkers, Blade teamed up with Morbius to defeat Lilith and the two later work together to defeat Deacon Frost. Back in New York, during a battle against Spider-Man, Morbius bites Blade, granting him with the enhanced abilities of a vampire but none of their weaknesses. Blade's invulnerability to sunlight grants him the unofficial nickname "Daywalker" by his enemies.

10 CAUGHT ON FILM

Originally the "living" vampire was supposed to have an encounter with the Daywalker at the end of the first Blade film. In an alternate ending, after defeating Deacon Frost, Blade spots a cloaked figure standing on a nearby rooftop. Instantly recognizing him as Morbius, Blade grabs his sword and prepares for battle. His confrontation with Morbius was meant to be the set-up for the sequel but was scrapped when Guillermo del Toro took over the project.

The character was also supposed to appear in Sam Raimi's never made fourth Spider-Man movie. A reference to Morbius is made in Amazing Spider-Man 2 in a close-up of Oscorp's secret files, revealing his name listed among Dr. Connors and Project Venom.

9 CAT GOT YOUR TONGUE

In Adventures into Fear #20, Morbius becomes controlled by the demonic Reverend Daemond and is sent to kidnap a young physic vampire named Tara. When he tries to deliver her to Daemond, he is thwarted by the mysterious Caretakers of Arcturus. They manage to sway Morbius into joining their mission to defeat Daemond by promising the return of his lost love Martine.

Fueled by his desire to be reunited with the fiancee, Morbius tries to attack Daemond who summons the cat-demon Balkator. During the fight, Balkator breaks free from Daemond's control and transports Morbius to "The Land Within," home of the race of humanoids known as The Cat People. In the following issues, Morbius teams up with Balkator and Blade to defeat Daemond.

8 AN EMOTIONAL JOURNEY

In a desperate attempt to stop his thirst for blood and causing further harm, Morbius used a set of wristbands obtained from an alien entity known as the Living Eraser to transport himself away from Earth. Unknowingly, he travels to the realm of a being called The Empathoid who is awakened by Morbius' emotional turmoil. After possessing the vampire, he travels back to Earth to feed on the emotions of its inhabitants.

Fully in control of Morbius, the Empathoid begins a reign of chaos, feeding on the growing panic. Drawing the attention of Spider-Man, the entity takes possession of the hero. He is defeated when Spider-Man leads him to a football stadium where the intensity of the crowd's emotions cause the Empathoid to overload.

7 NOT A TEAM-PLAYER

Vowing to only feed on the corrupt, Morbius attempted to lead a more heroic lifestyle by joining The Midnight Sons. Led by Ghost Riders Johnny Blaze and Daniel Ketch, the team was formed after the two received a vision of Lilith's resurrection and plot to take over the world using her demonic offspring. During their battle with the Mother of all Demons, Morbius becomes possessed by the Lilin Bloodthirst and betrays his teammates, killing one of their members.

Doctor Strange, who joins the group later in the battle, tries to save Morbius by convincing him not to give into demon's control. The Ghost Riders eventually confront Lilith and use The Medallion of Power to transport her and her children back to Shadowside.

6 A MONSTROUS UNION

After falling out with The Midnight Sons, Morbius became a member of The Legion of Monsters. Originally, the team was made up of Ghost Rider, Man-Thing, and Werewolf by Night but quickly dismantled after a failed investigation of the strange entity known as Starseed. In 2010, the group was revamped to include Manphibian, Santana, N' Kantu the Living Mummy, and FrankenCastle, the reanimated corpse of Punisher.

As protectors of their kind, The Legion helped to safeguard monsters by providing them sanctuary in the Morlock Tunnels from the Hunter of Monster Special Forces. In their mission to aid their kind from extinction, the group encounters Elsa Bloodstone, Dimensional Man, and a possessed Red Hulk.

5 SON OF THE DRAGON

In the Ultimate universe, Morbius is the son of Dracula and brother of Vlad Tepes III better known as Vlad the Impaler. Due to his supernatural bloodline, he is a true vampire and can be fatally harmed by the sun. Despite his heritage, Morbius actively tries to maintain control and hunts his fellow undead.

As the official offspring of the King of Vampires himself, Morbius' powers are drastically different from those outside the Ultimate universe. His bite cures those infected with the vampire disease as long as they haven't given into the temptation of feeding off of others. Along with enhanced abilities, Morbius is able to heal himself and is considered to be "functionally immortal" at over 500 years old.

4 A LUCKY STRIKE

In The Spectacular Spider-Man #38, Morbius is temporarily cured of his pseudo-vampiric condition. During a confrontation on top of a mansion in Long Island, Morbius is struck by lightning as he's draining Spider-Man. The reaction causes the radiation in Spider-Man's blood to reverse the "living" vampire's condition. After the incident, Spider-Man notices Morbius' skin-tone change from pale white to a more natural hue and declares "he's human again! He's cured!"

No longer having the need to feed on others to sustain himself, Morbius is still cursed with the physiological desire to drink blood. Still wanting to find a more sustainable and permanent cure, he heads to Los Angeles where he begins work at the University of California.

3 BRAINS AND BRAWN

While in Los Angeles, Morbius crosses paths with Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk, when she decides to act as his representative when he is on trial for the violent murders he committed as a vampire. In court, Walters argues that the crimes weren't "premeditated" but "symptoms of a situation beyond his control."

In exchange for her help, Morbius is tasked with curing She-Hulk of a fatal blood disease after she collapses following a fight with Ultima. While in custody for involuntary manslaughter, Morbius finally develops the cure he has long waited for but holds off from drinking it as his desires continue to tempt him. Ultimately convinced into giving her the serum, he cures She-Hulk of her debilitating disease.

2 DIVINE INTERVENTION

In Vampire Tales #10, in his struggle to control his appetite, Morbius, under the name Nikos Michaels, rents a room from a woman named Alicia Twain as an attempt to seclude himself from the world. Seeing the torment her guest is going through, Twain tries to heal him through faith and compassion. When she is killed by angry villagers demanding her land, Morbius gives into his thirst and vows revenge.

In a violent rage, he slaughters the villagers responsible for Twain's death only to realize the extent of what he has done. Angered, Morbius shouts to the sky "the only faith I'll believe in is that which strikes me dead where I stand." As if answered by someone above, a lightning bolt strikes at his feet.

1 RISEN FROM THE GRAVE

At long last, the pseudo-vampire will finally have his day in the sun... so to speak. Sony Pictures recently announced production for Morbius the Living Vampire. The role has been given to Jared Leto, still shaking off backlash from his portrayal of the Joker in Suicide Squad. An unofficial synopsis for the film reveals it will remain faithful to Morbius' comic-book origin but show him "[choosing] to prey upon criminals he deems unworthy of life."

The 30 Seconds to Mars frontman and actor confirmed his involvement by uploading an image of the character on his Instagram feed. Teased to focus on Morbius being an anti-hero outside of the Spiderverse, the film will be directed by Daniel Espinosa with Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless listed to pen the screenplay.