The highly anticipated Blade movie has unfortunately been drained of all its momentum and appears to be officially stalled. The Marvel Cinematic Universe film, which promised to feature Mahershala Ali as the iconic Daywalker, has faced numerous challenges, and it seems unlikely to resume production anytime soon.
Rapper and artist Flying Lotus recently took to X / Twitter to share his involvement with the project, revealing that he was set to compose the music for the film before it fell through. "I guess we are so far from it even being a possibility now but. Yeah I was signed on to write music for the new BLADE movie before it fell thru," he tweeted. Flying Lotus, who recently directed the sci-fi horror film ASH for Shudder, expressed doubts about the project's revival, stating, "Maybe it'll come around again but I doubt it. Would have been fun tho."
Adding to the disappointment, costume designer Ruth E. Carter confirmed on The John Campea Show that she was set to work on Blade's costumes. The film was intended to be set in the 1920s, a setting that promised intriguing costume and production design possibilities.
Actor Delroy Lindo, who was also attached to star alongside Mahershala Ali, shared his experience with the project in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. "When Marvel came to me, they seemed to be really interested in my input," he said. "And in the various conversations I had with producers, the writer, the director at the time, it was all leading into being very inclusive. It was really exciting conceptually, but it was also exciting in terms of the character that was going to form. And then, for whatever reason, it just went off the rails."
Blade was first announced at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019, with a planned release in November of this year if everything had gone according to plan. The film has seen several directors, including Yann Demange and Bassam Tariq, but none have stayed with the project long enough to see it through.
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Despite the setbacks, it has been only six months since Blade was removed from Marvel’s release schedule in October 2024, and no new release date has been confirmed. However, MCU boss Kevin Feige remains optimistic. In an interview with Omelete in November 2024, he stated, "We are committed to Blade. We love the character, we love Mahershala's take on him. And rest assured: whenever we change direction with a project, or are still figuring out how it fits into our schedule, we let the audience know. You're all up to date on what's happening. But I can tell you that the character will indeed make it to the MCU."
