Warning: Spoilers for Moon Knight to follow.
Moon Knight has been one of MCU’s biggest wildcards in franchise history; not only did it manage to get by as a series without the interconnectivity or cameos that are so core to the MCU, but it went in a particularly bold direction in terms of its darker tone, more intense violence, and its tackling of a mature theme in the form of mental health and dissociative identity disorder (DID).
It was a win with both critics and fans, and one aspect of the series that received particular praise was Oscar Isaac’s performance as the two protagonists, Marc Spector and Steven Grant, who together share the mantle of the titular hero.
During the events of the show, we learn that Marc Spector developed DID during his childhood by way of his abusive mother, which caused him to create a second personality in the form of Steven. A combination of careful handling by the Marvel Studios team and Isaac’s aforementioned acting masterclass allowed the show to tackle the issue with a great deal of respect.
In an interview with Gold Derby, Isaac touched on the task of handling such a topic with sensitivity, and the warm reception the show received from those living with DID.
I’ve heard from quite a few systems actually… which is the term for people with the DID and the system that holds the alters and they feel really seen and represented specifically.
He would go on to remark that it also touched the lives of viewers who didn’t necessarily live with DID, but who instead live with other traumas or mental health conditions, creating an important instance of representation in the MCU that hadn’t been deeply explored prior to Moon Knight.
And then also people that don’t necessarily have dissociative identity disorder, but have suffered different traumas through their life, different battles with mental health that… we could use a platform this massive to tell a story about that… I’ve been very moved by some of those responses and really gratified, because that was the goal.
Moon Knight is available to stream on Disney Plus. Elsewhere, Isaac is set to lend his voice to Miguel O’Hara (aka Spider-Man 2099) in the upcoming animated film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
