Blade’s Long-Delayed MCU Reboot Finally Shows Signs of Life
After years of stalled starts, Marvel’s Blade could finally be sinking its teeth into real progress. First unveiled at SDCC 2019 with Mahershala Ali, the long-delayed MCU reboot might at last have a way forward — and fans a reason to hope.
Marvel's ongoing struggle to reboot Blade for the MCU has been the kind of drawn-out saga that even vampires would get bored with. If you feel like you've been waiting for Mahershala Ali's Blade since the dawn of time, you are not alone—Marvel announced the movie way back in July 2019, and we're still stuck in development limbo. Now, there might finally be an escape hatch, and it doesn’t involve re-re-rebooting the character—or at least, not in the way you’d expect.
The Never-Ending Blade Delay
Let's recap the mess: Marvel paraded Mahershala Ali out at San Diego Comic-Con to much fanfare, but nearly five years later, that Blade solo film remains mostly vapor. The reasons for all the delays haven’t really been spelled out publicly, but if you look at the revolving door of writers, directors, and scripts, “creative differences” doesn’t quite cover it.
Meanwhile, Marvel keeps finding ways to tease fans—with alternate versions of Blade popping up here and there. We've had the classic Wesley Snipes cameo in 'Deadpool & Wolverine' (which is frankly hilarious, since old-school Blade is still iconic) and even a Blade Knight voiced by Todd Williams showing up in the animated 'Marvel Zombies'. But Mahershala Ali as Blade? Still missing in action.
So What's the Fix?
Here’s where things get interesting: Oscar Isaac (Moon Knight himself) recently popped up on the 'Happy Sad Confused' podcast and talked about the rumored Midnight Suns project. Now, to be clear, Marvel hasn't officially pulled the trigger on a Midnight Suns movie or series. Still, the chatter is that this could finally be the way to get Blade into the MCU—just not in his own movie (at least, not at first).
The rumor-mill says that if Midnight Suns happens, it would probably circle around Oscar Isaac’s Moon Knight, Ali as Blade, and a Ghost Rider—maybe even played by Ryan Gosling, who’s been unofficially attached to that role in Hollywood rumorland for ages. None of that’s set in stone, but you get the idea.
Why This Could Actually Work
At this stage, nobody really understands why it’s so hard to make a solo Blade film. It seems pretty straightforward—vampire hunter, R-rated action, cool hero—but for some reason it keeps getting stuck. So here’s a practical workaround: instead of pinning all their hopes on another rocky solo Blade project, Marvel could introduce Blade as a key piece of the Midnight Suns lineup.
Having Blade team up with Moon Knight and Ghost Rider right away means less pressure on Ali’s big debut—he’d have other heavyweights to play off of, Marvel could figure out his MCU tone in a group setting, and then, if it works, carve out a solo movie for him later. It’s basically lowering the risk while keeping the character’s hype alive. Why hasn’t Marvel fast-tracked this already?
'We just need Blade to show up.' (That’s the mood for pretty much every Marvel fan at this point.)
Where Things Stand Right Now
- Blade (with Mahershala Ali) was announced in July 2019 — still no release date.
- Wesley Snipes’s Blade cameoed in 'Deadpool & Wolverine'.
- Animated Blade Knight voiced by Todd Williams popped up in 'Marvel Zombies'.
- Midnight Suns (Moon Knight, Blade, Ghost Rider) is rumored, but not confirmed.
- Ryan Gosling is repeatedly linked to Ghost Rider, but Marvel hasn’t made it official.
In the end, everyone—Marvel included—seems to agree on one thing: Blade has to get into the MCU, somehow, some way. If Marvel is serious about this Midnight Suns concept, there’s no time like now to pull the trigger. At the very least, it would finally get Ali’s Blade on screen, where he belongs, and maybe (just maybe) kickstart some momentum for that ever-elusive solo film.