It looks like Blade is still stuck in development hell, and now Variety confirms that Marvel Studios has no urgency to move forward with the Mahershala Ali-led reboot.
No Rush, Says Marvel
Despite the movie being announced all the way back in 2019 with an Oscar-winning actor attached, and despite multiple rewrites, directors, and delays, the Marvel brass still isn’t pushing the gas pedal.
According to a new report from Variety: “Amid an industrywide pullback on superheroes, the Marvel brain trust is feeling no sense of urgency on the long-gestating ‘Blade’ reboot.”
Kevin Feige excuses
That lines up with Kevin Feige’s recent excuses where he claimed they didn’t want to just “put a leather outfit on [Ali] and have him start killing vampires,” and that they went through multiple versions of the script before deciding on a modern-day setting.
Feige also blamed the delay on Marvel’s pivot to producing “insanely great” content only — whatever that means in the post-Endgame era.
Ali Still Ready, Marvel Still Fumbling
While Feige drags his feet, Mahershala Ali has made it clear he’s waiting. When asked about the status of Blade during the Jurassic World Rebirth press tour, Ali chuckled and said, “Leave me out of it.” But in a separate interview, he added: “Call Marvel. I’m ready. Let them know I’m ready.”
So what’s the holdup? Maybe Ryan Gosling really is playing Marvel’s new Blade.
