The difficulties seem to know no respite for “Blade”, the cinematic reboot by Marvel Studios that aims to relaunch the famous comic book character in a guise more in line with the tastes of modern audiences, after the success of the historic trilogy with Wesley Snipes released in the early 2000s.
Starring “Moonlight” star Mahershala Ali, the title will fit into the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s amazing cauldron , tying in with old and new developments to place the deadly vampire hunter among the large group of fearless superheroes. As is now sadly known, since its announcement in 2019, the project has attracted various problems : after the first draft of the script dating back to 2022, Ali reportedly rejected the work done, deeming it too short and not inclined towards action.
From that moment on, rewrites began to become more and more frequent, with the consequent involvement of Beau DeMayo, already author of the “Moon Knight” series, and the subsequent change in direction from Bassam Tariq to Yann Demange. The chaos generated would have even demotivated the star to continue being part of the project, so much so that the occasions in which he would have considered stepping aside were realistic and frequent. The discontent inevitably infected the fanbase as well, which even went so far as to split and mobilize a group of detractors to ask for the cancellation of the title.
The message “Cancel Mahershala Ali’s Blade movie and bring Wesley Snipes’ Daywalker into the MCU” quickly went viral on social media, attracting Snipes’ attention, who however preferred to joke about it without giving too much weight to the issue. Marvel Studios leader Kevin Feige instead instilled some hope last month in an interview with BlackTree TV.
Speaking on the merits, the boss justified the delays and related setbacks with the desire to make the best possible title, without running the risk of excessive haste: "In the last few years we've been trying to figure out how to make that film. The most important thing for us is not to rush it and make the right Blade film. Because there were some great Blade films a few years ago, they were all R-rated."
Delayed in part due to the consequences of the SAG-AFTRA actors and writers strike, the film is still scheduled to hit theaters on November 7, 2025, but the latest news seems to want to overturn those plans once again . In addition to not receiving any kind of update during the “San Diego Comic-Con,” “Blade” was omitted from the recent list indicating Marvel titles scheduled through 2027.
Even more fearful were the statements of Disney CEO Bob Iger, anticipating good expectations for the upcoming projects without alluding in any way to the film in question: «As we look at our theatrical schedule, we are excited to bring audiences a slate of titles that expand our popular franchises and bring these stories to life in new and imaginative ways. Later this year, we have the highly anticipated releases of “Moana 2” and “Mufasa: The Lion King.” In 2025, our theatrical schedule remains equally robust, with “Captain America: Brave New World,” “Thunderbolts*,” “Fantastic Four: First Steps,” “Zootopia 2” and “Avatar 3.” And in 2026, we look forward to “Avengers: Doomsday,” a new Star Wars film featuring the Mandalorian and Grogu, and “Toy Story 5,” the first Toy Story film since 2019». It seems very strange that no reference has been made here to “Blade”.
In short, the situation continues to not bode well. All that remains is to hope for an announcement specifically designed to lift spirits, or at least for confirmation that the title will see the light during the new year. The next few months, if nothing else, will be crucial to clarify things.
