Ethan Hawke had a very disturbing idea for introducing his Moon Knight antagonist Arthur Harrow, one which Marvel willingly incorporated into the script.
Speaking to THR, Hawke recalled approaching Moon Knight‘s directors and, remembering how comic book villains often received a full-page spread, asked, “What would the full-page drawing be that introduces Harrow? What is his secret that you want to let the audience in on?” In turn, the directors turned that question back on Hawke, who thought up a paradoxical source for developing the cult leader, saying, “I was always hypnotized by deeply spiritual people who were self-lacerating. You hear stories about all these saints and how they would wear hair shirts or whip themselves. So I always was like, ‘I thought we were supposed to love each other and be kind. What is all this self-immolation? What is that about?'”
This led to Hawke pitching a a scene of Harrow enacting his own mutilation on-camera. As he described it, “So I had this vision of him pouring glass in his shoes and listening to Bob Dylan. And then I explained that to them, and they were like, ‘Let’s do that!’ And I was like, ‘Alright!'”
Though Hawke has been critical of superhero films in the past, both he and lead Oscar Isaac admitted that they were drawn to Moon Knight because of the character’s inherent disconnection from the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe. Furthermore, director Mohamed Diab revealed that he pitched the show to Hawke on the basis of Moon Knight‘s idea rather than its script, calling Harrow “[Hawke’s] son” and praising the actor for how much trust he put into this project. These standout attributes also reportedly extend to Moon Knight‘s action, with Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige accommodating this “brutal” side of Moon Knight by not having scenes pull back from moments of intense violence.
Harrow’s abilities were briefly teased during Moon Knight‘s newest clip, when he used his cane to open a purple energy portal and sic a supernatural monster against Moon Knight’s Steven Grant persona. As a character with dissociative identity disorder, Moon Knight‘s marketing has briefly spotlighted most of the titular protagonist’s identities. These include the British Steven (portrayed as a museum worker rather than a multi-millionaire), the American mercenary Marc Spector and his supernatural alter ego, and the three-piece suit-wearing detective Mr. Knight. The only personality supposedly absent from the show is Jake Lockley, a cab driver whose profession helps him gather information about criminal activity.
Moon Knight premieres on Disney+ March 30.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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