The internet’s favorite movie of 2022, the cinematic masterpiece that is Morbius, is finally being marketed for its meme value. Sony Pictures has launched the #MomsForMorbius hashtag, much to the sheer joy of Twitter’s segment of Morbheads.
The launch and reaction to Morbius, when you scrape away the layers of irony, has been a disaster for Sony. Its attempt to expand their Spider-Man Universe, and build out from the Venom duology has seen a 19 percent critics approval (if you can call it that) on Rotten Tomatoes, and bemusement from hardened comic fans.
Sony has perhaps finally tapped into the meme culture for its digital release, however. One of the most-memed scenes of the film involving Matt Smith dancing shirtless in the mirror is now the forefront of their new marketing strategy: #MomsForMorbius
The “lean into the meme” strategy seems possibly the best way around the disastrous response, and the replies are filled with Morbius meme-ry. #MorbiusSweep trended just as the film hit cinemas, with the joke being Morbius would become the greatest movie of all time and break box office records.
tony rebranded Venom after its initial release, with it later being marketed as a romantic comedy after the internet got its hands on a mediocrely-received film. Perhaps #MomsForMorbius can turn the ironic appreciation into sincere fan service if they ever do a follow-up to Jared Leto’s latest attempt at a comic book character.
Regardless, Morbius is still one of the highest-grossing films of 2022: for now. Grossing $161 million, it still isn’t close to Venom 2‘s emphatic $500 million box office gross from last year.
