LONDON, Jan 26 — The British Doctor Who and The Crown actor is joining Spider-Man spin-off Morbius opposite Jared Leto.

Sony has been hitting home runs with its rejuvenated Spider-Man film series, Tom Holland as its star and now fully integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, while animated movie Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has been a box office smash and a critical darling.

The studio giant is pushing ahead with its Spider-Man universe through antihero movie Morbius, a vampiric twist on the classic superhero persona, with British actor Matt Smith joining Jared Leto in a mystery role.

Leto is already set to star as Michael Morbius, a scientist specializing in hematological research who accidentally turns himself into a superhuman vampire.

Adria Arjona of True Detective season 2, Pacific Rim: Uprising and the Fortnite video game has also been linked with the project as female lead Martine Bancroft, with whom Morbius has a strong romantic connection.

Smith’s role has not yet been disclosed but Morbius’s frenemy Loxias Crown is rumored to be the movie’s villain, a role that Smith, the film’s third casting announcement, could now be occupying.

Swedish director Daniel Espinosa of sci-fi horror Life, Soviet drama Child 44 and CIA thriller Safe House, is to direct from a script written by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless (Dracula Untold, The Last Witch Hunter, Gods of Egypt, Power Rangers, TV series Lost in Space). — AFP-Relaxnews

British actor Matt Smith at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, January 2018, where he was nominated as part of ‘The Crown’ cast. — AFP pic