Marvel Comics' brand-new horror series, the "Midnight Universe," is officially set to launch on October 7, 2026. The initial wave of titles will include "Midnight Spider-Man" #1, "Midnight Fantastic Four" #1, and "Midnight X-Men" #1.
The publisher recently unveiled a host of variant covers, revealing a monstrous Spider-Man, a vampiric X-Men, and a fresh lineup featuring Magneto, Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver.
Marvel announced that the "Midnight Universe" will introduce clearer and more consistent rules for collecting variant covers. Starting with issue #1, each title will feature A through E covers with a fixed theme, alongside additional variant covers.
Of particular interest to horror aficionados is the "Midnight Fantastic Four" Cover D "Midnight Horror Homage Variant," illustrated by E.M. Gist. This striking cover pays direct tribute to John Carpenter's classic 1982 horror film "The Thing," echoing the movie's body horror aesthetic with grotesque bodily transformations and a sense of alien assimilation.
In terms of story, "Midnight Fantastic Four," penned by Benjamin Percy and drawn by Kev Walker, follows an obsessed scientist who delves into cosmic secrets never meant for human eyes, leading to his horrifying mutation along with three others.
Meanwhile, "Midnight Spider-Man," crafted by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and ScieTronc, sees a young Peter Parker transformed by Oscorp into a grotesque spider-hybrid, forced to embrace his monstrous form to battle even more human-animal hybrid experiments.
As for Jonathan Hickman and Matteo Della Fonte's "Midnight X-Men," the series depicts New York as a dark battleground where tensions escalate between burgeoning vampire and mutant empires. Marvel describes this universe's X-Men as no longer fighting for acceptance, but craving blood; the Fantastic Four venture into the unknown, not to save the world, but potentially to unleash terror.
"MIDNIGHT X-MEN" #1
Writer: Jonathan Hickman
Artist: Matteo Della Fonte
Release Date: October 7, 2026
"MIDNIGHT FANTASTIC FOUR" #1
Writer: Benjamin Percy
Artist: Kev Walker
Release Date: October 7, 2026
"MIDNIGHT SPIDER-MAN" #1
Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
Artist: ScieTronc
Release Date: October 7, 2026
via： Marvel Comics