Octopus (comics)

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Octopus is a fictional supervillain from Will Eisner’s The Spirit. He first appeared in The Postage Stamp on July 14, 1946, and becomes The Spirit’s main foe in later stories. The Octopus never shows his face; readers know him by his distinctive purple gloves. He is a master of disguise, able to imitate many people and stay anonymous. His battles with The Spirit are famous, and a fight once left Denny Colt temporarily blind. The gloves stay a symbol of his identity and his ability to change appearances.

In 2006, a Spirit movie was planned by Frank Miller, with Samuel L. Jackson cast as the Octopus. In the film, his face is shown and he has eight tear-like marks under his eyes, like tentacles, and he braggingly says he has “eight of everything.” He loves big guns and wears wild outfits, including a long fur coat, a Nazi uniform, and a samurai robe. The movie blends elements of Dr. Cobra from the comics with the Octopus and adds a plot about immortality through a regenerative formula and the mythical Blood of Heracles to become a god. He is aided by Silken Floss and cloned henchmen, and hires an assassin named Plaster of Paris. After a showdown with The Spirit, the Octopus is blown up by a grenade, but a severed finger found afterward hints he could return.

The Octopus is also mentioned in Alex Ross and Jim Krueger’s Project Superpowers, where he is said to have been killed by The Flame and his criminal empire is now run by his widow.