The arrival of the Moon Knight trailer sent the Marvel fandom into a frenzy. But one thing stuck out to some sharp-eared viewers as they heard Oscar Isaac’s take on a British accent. The accent already divided the fandom as they debated whether it was good or not. No one attached to the project had spoken on the controversy until now.
The wild Moon Knight accent in the trailer garnered a mix of reactions from the internet, including surprise to disappointment to just okay. Oscar Isaac finally addressed his divisive British accent with Empire (via Comic Book Movie). As polarizing as Steven Grant’s voice is, Isaac revealed his take on the Marvel character was on purpose.
I stand by the sound of Steven 100 per cent. It’s cool [the accent] got people excited, and some were like, ‘That sucks!’ and others were like, ‘That’s great!’ But there are reasons… That voice is about where Steven’s from, where he’s living now, and some of his believed heritage. It’s not an idea of what Brits actually sound like.
So, Isaac was intentional in making Grant sound the way he does. Given that Steven Grant is one of Moon Knight’s personalities, it seems like the Scenes from a Marriage star wanted to differentiate the mild-mannered Grant from the savage Marc Spector. He evidently wanted the personalities to have their space, despite not knowing much about the character before taking the role. Oscar Isaac wasn’t the only one who defended the accent. Moon Knight head writer Jeremy Slater jumped into the conversation, saying,
In the initial script, the difference between Steven and Marc was in attitude. It was Oscar who said, ‘What about an accent?’
So, it was a creative decision on Isaac’s part. He wanted to take the character’s disorder to another level. At least, Slater was willing to hear the Moon Knight star out. Some showrunners already have their vision and would want the talent to stick with the character on the page. But Slater was more about the collaboration to bring Steven Grant and Marc Spector to life.
The accent debate didn’t deter fans from going crazy about the Moon Knight Super Bowl spot. Viewers got their best look yet of the Marvel superhero as they got to see Marc Spector in his element, more Ethan Hawke as manipulative Arthur Darrow, and the introduction of the moon god Khonsu. As seen in every trailer, Moon Knight comes off as a vigilante, and even Marvel CEO Kevin Feige called the character “brutal” by saying the miniseries won’t pull back on the violence.
Viewers won’t have to wait too much longer for Moon Knight to make his MCU arrival, as the miniseries premieres on March 30. The Marvel series is one of the multiple new TV shows premiering this spring. In the meantime, there are amazing shows on Disney+ to check out if you’re looking for more Marvel content.
