Characters In Moon Knight Who Mean More Than You Think

Like every other Marvel series released to Disney+ so far, "Moon Knight" is part of a much bigger cinematic universe. Everything about it is potential connective tissue to link it up with another film, series, or both, somewhere down the line. That means that, while the series is mostly focused on Oscar Isaac in the title role, every character might be part of a larger narrative puzzle that could unfold over the course of years.

And, because "Moon Knight" is a show rooted in the world of Marvel Comics, we also have to factor in the years of history from the source material. Even if characters don't quite look or behave the same as they did on the comics page, there's always a rich other life to pull from, always something else to learn. So, if you're wondering who all these supporting players are, and what connections they have within the larger Marvel landscape, we're here to help. Here are the characters in "Moon Knight" who might mean more than you realize.

Warning: SPOILERS for "Moon Knight" ahead!

Early in "Moon Knight," we see Steven Grant spending some time on the streets of London, having a conversation with a street performer doing a living statue act. Steven is nice enough to take photos for visitors who want pictures with the living statue, and even encourages people to tip the man, but we don't hear much from the man himself. We only know that Steven seems to trust him with his troubles, even if the statue man isn't all that into hearing them.

In the closing credits of Episode 1, the performer played by Shaun Scott gets a name: Crawley. Longtime readers of "Moon Knight" comics will recognize the name, and the man's overall look. In the comics, Bertrand Crawley is a homeless man living in New York City who works for Moon Knight as an informant, passing him information despite not being in the superhero game himself. Based on the character's appearance, it's clear that this version of Crawley has just swapped New York for London. It's not clear yet if he might end up actually collaborating with Moon Knight, but his presence is still a nice nod to comics readers.

Early on in "Moon Knight," Steven Grant discovers a secret cell phone that belongs to Marc Spector, and scrolls through the list of recent calls. Most of them are listed as Layla, Marc's wife, but there's a smattering of calls from someone mentioned only as "Duchamp."

Though he hasn't appeared in the series yet, Jean-Paul "Frenchie" Duchamp is one of the most important characters in Marvel Comics Moon Knight lore. A French soldier who became a mercenary, he eventually joined up with Marc Spector. After Marc became Moon Knight, Frenchie offered his services to the hero as a pilot. Frenchie worked with Moon Knight for many years as a pilot, an informant, and a confidante, before he moved on to other ventures. At various points in Marvel Comics he's been portrayed as the heir to a secret bloodline that could defeat an ancient demonic race, a restaurateur tired of the hero game, and a gay man in love with Marc. All of these things seem possible if Frenchie ever actually shows up on the show, so be on the lookout for him.

In the second episode of "Moon Knight," we meet Layla El-Faouly (May Calamawy), a mysterious and capable woman who reveals that she is Marc Spector's wife — and she doesn't understand why he's pretending to be an Englishman named Steven Grant. Over the course of their reconnection, we learn a little more about Layla, and it's revealed that her father was an archaeologist who died the same night Marc became Moon Knight, killed by mercenaries in the tomb he was exploring.

There's no character who shares Layla's name in Marvel Comics, but Marc Spector does have a wife in the source material. Her name is Marlene Alraune, and her background is much the same as Layla's. She's the daughter of an archaeologist who's killed the night Marc becomes Moon Knight, and she later falls in love with — and eventually marries — him. While there are some differences with Layla and Marc's story, the comics could hold some very interesting clues to Layla's future. For example, Marlene eventually helps Marc form a company back in New York, and even has a child with him in the course of their on-again, off-again romance. So, there could be much more to Layla than this first batch of episodes suggests.

In Episode 3 of "Moon Knight," Marc and Layla head to the mansion of Anton Mogart (Gaspard Ulliel), a millionaire treasure hunter whose collection of antiquities may hold a vital clue to the site of Ammut's tomb. In the series, Anton is portrayed as a ruthless leader and a gifted fighter who very nearly kills both Layla and Marc.

In the comics, Anton Mogart is the real name of a master thief who calls himself The Midnight Man. An enemy of Moon Knight, his arc begins as a simple art and antiquities thief, but when a run-in with Moon Knight leaves him deformed, his life of crime takes on new meaning, as does his hooded black costume. He has no superpowers, but he still manages to be a formidable opponent. He also eventually has a son, to whom he passes on his skills.

By the end of the episode, Anton seems to be dead at Marc's hand, but there's always a possibility that Midnight Man could live on in future adventures. Keep an eye out to see if he re-emerges somewhere further down the line in the MCU, perhaps even with a new costume or a new face.

Though he's dead by the time the series begins, Layla's father Abdallah casts a long shadow over "Moon Knight," and in Episode 4 we learn why. He was a renowned archaeologist who spent years trying to prove that Egyptian gods were real beings, and was on the verge of a breakthrough when he was unexpectedly cornered by mercenaries, including Marc Spector, during a tomb exploration. In an effort to get the treasure for himself, Marc's partner killed everyone in the tomb, including Abdallah, ending a lifetime of work.

In the comics, this is essentially the same story as Marlene Alraune's father, Dr. Peter Alraune. He too is a renowned archaeologist who's killed in a tomb by a mercenary alongside Marc Spector, who becomes Moon Knight instead of dying in the desert.

It's hard to tell at this point what more we might get from Abdallah, but Peter's presence in Moon Knight's comic book history is a big piece of the hero's story, as Abdallah's presence seems to be in the Disney+ series. It wouldn't be surprising to learn more about the man and his search later in the character's live-action life.

In an emotional moment in Episode 4 of "Moon Knight," Marc is forced to confess to Layla what really happened the night he was reborn as the avatar of Khonshu. Marc was working as a mercenary who attempted to raid the tomb where Layla's father was working — a tomb where the imprisoned Khonshu just happened to be waiting. Instead of simply raiding the tomb, though, Marc's partner got greedy and decided to kill everyone inside, including Marc himself and Layla's father.

At this point, we have no idea what happened to that partner, or who he actually is, but in the comics, that character is Raul Bushman, a ruthless fighter who betrayed Marc and later launched various criminal enterprises on his own. In some Moon Knight comics, he's the head of a powerful drug ring in New York City. In others, he's staging a coup in his home nation of Burunda. In still others, he's disrupting international diplomacy and framing Moon Knight for it. Wherever he appears, Bushman is very bad news, which means if he pops up on the series eventually, pay attention.

Episode 5 of "Moon Knight" reveals big chunks of Marc Spector's backstory, delving into what happened during his early childhood that caused him to develop dissociative identity disorder. As we learn through flashbacks (initiated by Taweret weighing Marc's heart in the afterlife), Marc had a younger brother named Randall, affectionately called "Ro Ro" by their mother. One day, while playing in a cave that began to flood, Randall drowned while Marc managed to escape. Their mother blamed Marc for Randall's death and became abusive, which led to him creating the "Steven Grant" persona, based on one of his favorite movie heroes.

In the show, Randall Spector is just a regular little boy who dies very young, but in the comics, his story is much more complicated. Randall's comic book arc involves him growing up alongside his brother and also becoming a mercenary, only to eventually turn on Marc. He appears dead several times, but he just keeps on coming back to plague his brother, eventually becoming the villain Shadowknight. It's unlikely we'll see this play out in the MCU, but anything's possible in the era of the multiverse.

Throughout "Moon Knight," while following the adventures of both Marc Spector and Steven Grant, we get hints that there are perhaps more identities living within Marc's body. Sometimes the hints are very small, but in Episode 5, they start to come out in a bigger way. While talking to Dr. Harrow in the asylum, we see Marc with a bandage across the bridge of his nose, talking in a slightly different accent, and seemingly growing more aggressive than either Marc or Steven. In Episode 6, this persona is finally revealed as Jake Lockley, and he's depicted as significantly more ruthless than either of his cohorts.

In the comics, Jake is a New York cab driver developed as an alter ego who allows Marc to gather information about crime on the streets. He isn't afraid to hurt the bad guys if they don't cough up what they know. Over time, though, he becomes a much bigger part of the Moon Knight narrative, even enjoying a spell as the dominant personality. It remains to be seen if Jake will have the same impact in the MCU, but, as Khonshu says, Marc has no idea just how troubled he really is.