Moon Knight: Why Does Only Marc Have Power? | Screen Rant
Warning! Spoilers ahead for Moon Knight episode 1!
While Marvel's Moon Knight introduces viewers to Oscar Isaac's Steven Grant, it seems as though only his alternate personality Marc Spector can access the power of Moon Knight. Having released its first episode on Disney+, Moon Knight opens with a massive mystery about Steven Grant and his mundane life working in a museum gift shop, discovering that there's so much more going on than he knows. Caught in the middle of a conflict surrounding a golden scarab, Grant is forced to give up control to Marc Spector's Moon Knight, a personality sharing his body who seems to be the only one capable of using the power given to them by a god.
In Moon Knight episode 1, Steven Grant struggles to stay awake for as long as he can, believing that he sleepwalks, seeing as how he often wakes up in strange situations. In truth, Grant has other personalities that take over when he sleeps, though this first episode reveals that Grant has begun to lose control even when he's awake, finding himself in conflict with a man named Arthur Harrow (played by Ethan Hawke). This is thanks to Marc Spector, the other personality vying for control, who is also the vigilante Moon Knight, chosen by the Egyptian god of the moon known as Khonshu.
While Grant may have been introduced to viewers first in Marvel's Moon Knight, Steven is actually an alternate personality of Marc Spector, who lives with Dissociative Identity Disorder. Given Grant's confusion, it seems as though Marc intentionally kept his alter in the dark about their life as a vigilante to protect him. However, this current conflict over a golden scarab has certainly complicated things. Being hunted by a monstrous jackal summoned by Arthur Harrow in service to the goddess Ammit, the end of the episode sees Marc facing Grant directly, encouraging his alter to give him control so he can become Moon Knight and save them both. This implies that Grant cannot access the power himself, likely because Marc is the original host chosen by Khonshu, as seen in the comics.
In the comics, Marc is the one who takes the lead and becomes Moon Knight over his alters. However, it looks as though the MCU is taking Marc Spector's role even further by making the transformation into Moon Knight a power in and of itself, with the costume materializing rather than being a normal suit. This would also fall in line with DID, in which the original personality someone is born with is generally thought to be the root of the person's psyche. In the comics, Khonshu chose and revived Marc after being left for dead, making him his Fist and High Priest. If the same holds true in the MCU, it would make sense that Marc Spector is the only personality who can become access the power and become Moon Knight (with Marc being the original host).
It should be noted that this is largely conjecture based on what's known from the preexisting comics. The MCU could certainly change Moon Knight's origins as they already have, like Grant working in a gift shop rather than being a millionaire who financially backs Moon Knight's missions. While there's still a lot Steven Grant doesn't know about Marc and Moon Knight, it seems as though that will soon change where he'll likely be brought into the fold. Although Steven can't access the power of Moon Knight at the moment like Marc, perhaps he'll be able to later on in future episodes of Moon Knight once he learns the truth about his own existence.
Moon Knight releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.