Wesley Snipes once again gets involved with the troubled MCU Blade reboot, and the actor’s questionable action has drawn backlash from the superhero fandom.
After multiple delays, the MCU’s first Blade movie is still slated for a November 2025 release, though it seems perpetually out of reach. Mahershala Ali (Moonlight, Green Book) was announced as the vampire hunter at San Diego Comic-Con 2019 and appeared uncredited in the post-credits scene of Chloé Zhao’s Eternals in 2021 as Kit Harington’s Dane Whitman embraced the Ebony Blade.
Blade has encountered significant development issues. In 2021, Stacy Osei-Kuffour was hired to write the movie, and Bassam Tariq was brought on as director in September.
However, Tariq departed in 2023 due to scheduling and creative differences, leading to Yann Demange’s hiring as the new director. Throughout this turbulent period, various writers, including Michael Starrbury, Nic Pizzolatto, Eric Pearson, and Michael Green, worked on the script. The latest development revealed that Yann Demange had exited the project, leaving the film without a director once again.
Given these updates, along with Bob Iger’s strategy to limit releases to three movies per year, optimism for the 2025 release remains uncertain.
The most recent update regarding the progress of the Blade reboot came during Marvel Studios’ return to Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con. Kevin Feige took to the stage to discuss the current Phase Five and forthcoming Phase Six.
Among the announcements was Matt Shakman’s The Fantastic Four (2025) being renamed The Fantastic Four: First Steps and the confirmation that Avengers 5 would no longer be called Avengers: The Kang Dynasty but Avengers: Doomsday instead. Doomsday is expected to be released in 2026.
In addition to the Doomsday reveal, which, along with Avengers: Secret Wars (2027), will be directed by superhero heavyweights Anthony Russo and Joe Russo, AKA the Russo Brothers, Marvel shared that Robert Downey Jr. has returned to the franchise as Doctor Doom.
Downey Jr., who played Tony Stark/Iron Man for 11 years, will shed the red and gold armor in favor of the classic green cowl of Doom. Despite his popularity, though, there has been backlash surrounding the surprise casting of the Academy Award-winning actor.
One project absent from proceedings in Hall H was the immensely troubled Blade reboot. Feige failed to mention any news regarding the project, which was announced on the very same stage five years ago. Blade‘s omission wasn’t all that surprising considering the aforementioned development chaos the project has been through–something Feige recently spoke about.
“For the last few years, we’ve been trying to crack that movie,” Feige said in an interview with Black Tree TV. “I think the most important thing for us is not rushing it and making sure that we’re making the right Blade movie because there were some great Blade movies years ago.”
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Feige’s comments and the news of Iger’s MCU distribution strategy seemed to be the nail in the coffin for Blade‘s 2025 release. However, a recently updated release schedule from Disney still has the MCU Blade reboot on the slate for next November, while an untitled July 2026 was removed for reasons unknown.
Mahershala Ali may be yet to make his official MCU debut, but Wesley Snipes, who played the titular dhampir in Blade (1998), Blade II (2002), and Blade: Trinity (2004), has already made his.
Snipes, after many rumors, . He starred alongside Jennifer Garner’s Elektra Natchios, Channing Tatum’s Remy LeBeau/Gambit, and Dafne Keen’s Laura/X-23.
In true Deadpool franchise fashion, Snipes made an extremely meta comment regarding the MCU Blade reboot, saying, “There’s only been one Blade; Only ever gonna be one Blade,” during the final assault on Cassandra Nova’s (Emma Corrin) lair in the Void.
Snipes had previously commented on the Blade production drama following Yann Demenge’s exit in June in a post on X (formerly Twitter). Now, the Eric Brooks actor has once again broadcast his thoughts, and this time, backlash has ensued.
Posting to Instagram, Snipes shared an article headline that read, “Cancel Mahershala Ali’s Blade Movie and Bring Wesley Snipes’ Daywalker Back Into the MCU.”
Y’all, crazy! hahaha
View this post on Instagram
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While Snipes wasn’t necessarily endorsing the sentiment, his resharing of the article has drawn criticism from fans. One comment read:
“Tryna stop another black man’s bag? Idk about that. Loved your blade let’s usher in a new era.”
While another said:
“There’s room for both. Just like it’s room for all those Spidermen. Support a brother.”
One other comment echoed the above sentiment:
My dude you bugging. I understand you trying to eat but this is a talented black actor you trying to get off a project that could be amazing. Ryan renolds put you back on and it was amazing seeing you on the screen. I grew up watching Nino Brown but this ain’t it bro.
Conversely, there was support for canceling the Blade reboot, with one Snipes fan saying:
Bring back the REAL first black blockbuster superhero
Another avid fan wrote:
I like Mr. Ali as an artist, but respectfully I’m passing on the new Blade. I don’t wanna see anyone else play that part.
One fan addressed the Disney element of the MCU Blade reboot:
That guys movies been in development hell for too long now , it’s too late . Keep og blade , he’s the one fans want. But Disney is gonna do what they want then blame the fans when their stupidity is proven.
Only time will tell how Marvel Studios will bring the Daywalker into the MCU proper, but as Feige continues to wrestle with the development of the Phase Six movie, unrest continues to brew. With Wesley Snipes himself getting involved in the discourse, the story of this reboot is far from over.
Wesley Snipes’s Legacy as Blade: 26 Years and Counting
Blade, released in 1998, is a superhero horror film directed by Stephen Norrington, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Wesley Snipes stars as Blade, a half-human, half-vampire hybrid known as a Daywalker.
The plot centers on Blade’s battle against the vampire overlord Deacon Frost, played by Stephen Dorff, who plans to trigger an apocalyptic event to establish vampires as the dominant species.
Blade is considered a pioneering film in the modern superhero genre, preceding the wave of successful Marvel films and aiding in the resurgence of comic book adaptations in cinema before the surge the MCU caused from 2008.
The film’s success spawned two sequels, Blade II and Blade: Trinity (2004), and solidified Wesley Snipes’ status as an action star. Additionally, Blade received acclaim for its unique take on vampire mythology and its R-rated approach, setting it apart from other superhero movies of its era.
What do you think of the MCU Blade reboot? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!
