The One Non-Marvel Movie You Should Watch Before Moon Knight

Before settling down for Moon Knight, there’s one non-Marvel film that every fan should watch before the show’s release. Directed by Mohamed Diab and the iconic indie duo, Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, Moon Knight follows Steven Grant (played by Oscar Issac), who is haunted by flashes of another life. Steven Grant soon learns that he has dissociative identity disorder (DID) and that his alter, Marc Spector, has a life of his own and he must now tap into this life to unravel an Egyptian mystery.

In a recent Moon Knight clip, the show evokes a dark and gritty vibe that is unlike anything previously seen in Marvel’s MCU projects. However, this is not surprising considering that Benson and Moorhead, known for their brainy meta-horror films, are at the helm for Moon Knight. Although still fairly obscure, their indie horror flicks have garnered a cult-like following. Among their most popular and critically acclaimed works is the multi-layered sci-fi drama The Endless. With a shoe-string budget, the film captures the very essence of Lovecraftian horror by playing with a viewer’s perception of reality and instilling ingenious visuals that stay long after the credits start rolling.

Many fans of the Benson and Moorhead believe that their movies have created somewhat of a cinematic universe in their own right, with little strings of subtle references connecting their plots. While it is self-evident that Moon Knight isn’t another addition to their movieverse, Moon Knight‘s directors have confirmed that “It’s stuff that’s kind of like what we already do. Archive 81’ definitely shares DNA with [our previous films] The Endless and Resolution. You’ll see with same with Moon Knight.” What makes this claim even more intriguing is that everything known about Moon Knight‘s plot and its underlying themes isn’t a far cry from The Endless, implying that The Endless could be a must-watch before Moon Knight to catch hidden references.

Similar to Stephen Grant/Marc Spector, the two protagonists of The Endless have are dealing with issues of identity and struggle to find the right balance between two polar choices. Benson and Moorhead are also known for slinging their characters into uncomfortable, chaotic situations. For instance, the main characters of The Endless find themselves trapped in a UFO death cult where a cosmic deity warps the fabrics of space, time, and reality. As Moon Knight‘s trailers suggest, it treads a similar path where Stephen Grant is struggling to come to terms with living with DID as he works to separate reality from fantasy. Not to mention, both the movie and show have supernatural cults and powerful gods at their fore.

Moon Knight marks Benson and Moorhead’s foray into superhero-centric television, but it’s evident that, as always, they will not shy away from bending genres and spinning their cosmic horror yarn to Marvel’s spindle. It has already been announced that this is not the last time Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead will be working on comic-book adaptations as they are onboard to co-direct most of the episodes in Loki Season 2. With so many tentpole projects under their belt, the pair has come a long way, and hopefully, their work in mainstream television will encourage viewers to check out their lesser-known but equally commendable indie movies.