Many Moon Knight fans were surprised by the lack of Marlene Alraune’s name in any casting announcements. The character’s history has been tangled up with Marc’s since the very beginning, with her literally being a part of his origin story. She came from the minds of Moon Knight creators Doug Moench and Don Perlin, and like most of the hero’s supporting cast, made her first appearance in “Marvel Spotlight” Vol. 1 #28 in 1976. She is a major figure not only in Marc’s life, but also in Steven’s (and Jake’s), and has been the character’s primary love interest since her inception, though their romance has been off and on. They even had a child together.

Initially, Layla does indeed seem to have been created specifically for the Disney+ show, but as more of her backstory comes to light, it’s clear that she is the MCU’s Marlene Alraune. “The Friendly Type” drops the first major clue, that not only was her father an archeologist, but he was also murdered. “Summon the Suit” had previously revealed that Marc was responsible for the death of an archeologist during his time as a mercenary. Comic fans and savvy viewers could put together the fact that those archeologists are one and the same. In episode 3, Ethan Hawke’s Arthur Harrow implies Marc was somehow involved in the murder of Layla’s father, though it’s not confirmed until episode 4, when Harrow lays out the connection for Layla.

In the comics, Marc turned against his villainous partner Bushman after he murdered Marlene’s father, believing it to be a step too far. He saved Marlene’s life, but nearly lost his own. In fact, were it not for Khonshu, Marc would’ve died in the desert that day. It turns out, Moon Knight’s MCU origin is pretty much exactly the same.