Not surprising in the least bit, but after years of endless delays, it looks like Marvel’s “Blade” movie has finally been canceled.
The Playlist’s Rodrigo Perez, who doesn’t always dish out intel, but when he does it turns out to be accurate, is being told that “Blade” has been “nixed.”
Pencils have been put down, and active development on it has shuttered.
Now, with that said, it looks like Mahershala Ali’s Blade will still be introduced by Marvel in either “Midnight Sons,” “Avengers: Secret Wars,” or possibly as a “supporting character in another movie.”
It’s been a long and arduous road for this project with, at least, six writers who have taken a crack at the script, including Michael Green, Stacy Osei-Kuffour, Michael Starrbury, Beau DeMayo and Nic Pizzolatto. The latest draft had been written by Eric Pearson.
Since 2019, a handful of directors were once attached to helm “Blade,” only to eventually exit the film, including Bassam Tariq, Yann Demange, and Cary Fukunaga.
“Blade” was first announced six years ago, at San Diego’s ComicCon, and has been plagued by an endless array of delays caused by COVID, strikes, casting and, most pertinently, script issues. The film was originally set in the 1920s, but the latest draft had it taking place in present day.
Since “Blade” was announced, a handful of actors left the project, including Aaron Pierre and Delroy Lindo. Mia Goth remained attached to co-star as Lilith, a vampire seeking the blood of Blade’s daughter. Amidst all this chaos, Ali was said to be “increasingly frustrated,” but decided to stay put.