With a post of “We Are Moonknight“, actor Oscar Isaac has confirmed the already confirmed rumor that he’ll be donning the cowl for Marvel Studios‘ Moon Knight. Isaac will play the lead role of Marc Spector.
Jeremy Slater has been developing the series and leading the writing team. Justin Benson, Mohamed Diab, and Aaron Moorhead are listed as director, Slater and the character’s creators are listed with writing credits.
Moon Knight is the alter ego of Marc Spector, a mercenary who may be the conduit for the Egyptian moon god Khonshu. Spector also might be crazy with multiple personalities he inhabits. Are they part of his mission? Is it part of being a conduit for a god? Has he lost his mind?
Spector is also one of the few high-profile Jewish characters in the Marvel Universe. Magneto, The Thing, and Kitty Pryde being the other three well-known characters. With the casting of Isaac, an opportunity to have a Jewish actor tap into their experiences for the role is lost. Spector’s Jewishness is central to his character. He’s the son of a Rabbi and the “slave” of an Egyptian god. Isaac has said he has Jewish ancestry on his Father’s side of the family though both of his parents are evangelical Protestant and he was raised as one.
So far, it looks like the creative team and confirmed actors lack Jewish representation. For a character whose Jewishness is so vital, this should be concerning for representation.
Slater had developed The Umbrella Academy, another comic turned television series, for Netflix. That show has been accused and anti-Semitism making the lack of a Jewish voice as part of the creative team even more concerning. Creators of Umbrella Academy pushed back against the concerns.
Whether Marvel will downplay the character’s Jewishness remains to be seen but the company’s past actions of Jewish erasure should have folks weary of what’s to come.