Markus Corvinus is the first vampire in the Underworld storyline, portrayed by Tony Curran in Underworld: Evolution. He also appears in the novelization of the sequel.[1] He is the son of the first immortal and was bitten by a bat, thus making him into a Vampire.
Background[]
Markus was one of three sons of Helena and Alexander Corvinus. Alexander was a Hungarian warlord who carried a genetic mutation that made him immortal when it interacted with a deadly virus that had wiped out his entire village. Markus and his identical twin brother, William, both inherited this mutation from him. William was bitten by a wolf, making him the first werewolf and Markus was subsequently bitten by a bat, making him the first vampire.
William went on to ravage the countryside of Hungary, infecting the populace with his highly infectious lycanthropy virus. In order to combat the growing lycan threat, Markus approached Viktor, a dying warlord, to borrow his military genius and army (who became the Death Dealers) in exchange for immortality. Viktor accepted and became one of the Vampire Elders. It is likely that Markus also infected Amelia, the third vampire elder.
In 1202, Viktor led a charge into a Hungarian village which William had recently passed through, leaving dead bodies everywhere in his wake. William's bite was extremely infectious, and the dead villagers began to come back as Lycans, attacking and killing some of the vampires. Death Dealers, including Amelia, subdued and injured William before Markus, who pleaded with Viktor for his brother's life and reminded him that he had agreed not to hurt William. Viktor only abstained from killing Markus because Markus had told him that, should he die, all vampires would die- and the same held true for William and the Lycans. Viktor locked William away where he could not escape and hid the location of the prison from Markus.
After William was captured, the "Chain" was constructed, a system where only one Elder ruled while the other two slumbered. Supposedly, Markus ruled the two covens (the New World and Old World), but power was truly in the hands of Viktor, the ruler of the Old World coven. Viktor started to gather more power to himself to become the true leader of the Vampires, going as far as to alter history into naming him as the oldest and strongest of the vampires. Markus claimed that he enjoyed the company of Andreas Tanis, the Official Historian of the Coven, most likely because Tanis knew that Markus was indeed the original vampire. However, Viktor and Amelia undercut Markus' power, ensuring he would never have the strength to free his brother.
Underworld: Evolution[]
Much later, on the eve of Markus' awakening for his century of rule, a Lycan plot, led by the presumed dead Lucian, to combine the bloodlines became evident. A captured Lycan scientist called Singe explained Lucian's plan under duress - and was killed by a death blow from Viktor. His blood seeped into Markus' tomb and revived the slumbering Elder, turning him into a Hybrid and allowing him to be awakened before Kraven was able to kill him. Markus beheaded the treacherous Kraven with his wing-spikes after learning the regent's memories, and burned down Ordoghaz, the Old World Coven. Determined that the time had come to free William, he sought to find Selene, who held half of the key to William's dungeon. He failed on his first attempt thanks to Michael Corvin, his distant relative. Markus soon learned from Tanis, that the other half was held by his father, who had retrieved it from Viktor's body. Markus attacked the ship his father was living on while Selene and Michael were there, fighting Michael and nearly killing him. Markus then engaged in combat with Selene and managed to drink her blood to find the location of William's prison. After getting the knowledge from Selene's blood, he confronts and attacks his father, and subsequently retrieves the final key from him.
Upon arriving at William's prison, Markus was nearly attacked by his brother but William stopped as he seemed to recognize and remember his brother. Soon after William was released by Markus, Selene and Michael arrive, in which a battle is engaged. While Markus battled Selene, Michael managed to kill William by ripping his head off, while Markus was killed when Selene pushed him into the spinning blades of a helicopter.
Powers[]
Because Markus is the first Vampire, his super strength and speed are far superior to that of the rest of his kind including Victor and Amelia. As well as these features, being the first vampire granted him the ability to transform into a demonic looking beast with bat-like features, though he only gained this ability after becoming a hybrid. He has also demonstrated the ability to use his wings offensively, such as decapitating Kraven and impaling Selene and Michael Corvin. He was transformed into a Vampire-dominant hybrid after absorbing the blood of the Lycan Synge. This greatly increased his already formidable powers. Markus is an expert swordsman, having had centuries to master the weapon. It is believed that Markus has lost what little vulnerability he had left to the sun after becoming a hybrid, although he may not possess his full strength in direct sunlight. Markus has been able to recover from significant injuries quickly, suggesting an advanced healing factor. Like the other two Vampire Elders, Markus Corvinus has the ability to read another's memory from drinking their blood.