Despite many believing that the MCU’s Blade was set to get pushed back once again, a reassuring production update has surfaced.
Blade, starring Academy Award-winning actor Mahershala Ali was initially announced all the way back at San Diego Comic-Con 2019.
Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic hit shortly after that and the entire Marvel slate was forced to shift. Production on Blade was delayed more than once. Its original director departed the project shortly after that in Fall of 2022, delaying things even further.
Now, it appears that Marvel Studios is finally getting ready to kick things off.
Blade Production Begins Soon
The Hollywood Reporter recently claimed that actress Mia Goth, who plays a role in Blade, will join the film’s production in June, indicating that the Marvel movie will have entered principal photography by that point.
This update lines up with insider DanielRPK’s assertion that Blade will start shooting on May 30.
Previously, Jeff Snieder made the claim that the film was experiencing pre-production issues and could possibly become delayed yet again.
On the March 9 episode of his podcast The Hot Mic, Sneider remarked on the idea that Mahershala Ali wanted certain elements of the film to be carried out in a specific fashion, and he speculated that the actor's requests were what could have been causing a bit of behind-the-scenes trouble:
“Blade got a new director in November. Here we are, five months later, still no update on casting… See where I’m going with this stuff? Two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali, two-time Oscar winner, these people want things done a certain way, right? And they carry the weight to get their way, and that sometimes causes delays.”
This new report from THR, however, seems to confirm that everything is on track to meet Blade’s late-May start date.
What Will MCU's Blade Be About?
Assuming that the MCU’s take on the character will stick at least fairly close to the comic books, Blade will center on Eric Brooks, the Daywalker. With a half-human, half-vampire physiology, Blade possesses all of an average vampire’s strengths without any of its weaknesses, meaning he is not affected by sunlight.
And on the topic of vampires, fans might wonder how Marvel intends to bring such supernatural creatures into the MCU. But projects like Werewolf by Night and She-Hulk have clearly proven that otherwordly entities like vampires are well-represented in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It’s been rumored that Marvel Studios’ Blade movie will be a period piece set in the 1920s. This hasn’t been officially confirmed, but worry not; if true, it wouldn’t preclude Blade from taking part in any present-day MCU adventures thanks to his slowed aging.
Apart from lead Mahershala Ali and Mia Goth, the movie also stars Delroy Lindo, Milan Ray, and Aaron Pierre—it’s currently unknown which characters these actors will be portraying.
For fans wondering if Kit Harington’s Dane Whitman will show up after that Eternals tease, recent rumors have cast doubt on a role for the wielder of the Ebony Blade, but it still remains to be seen if he’s in the movie.
It hasn’t been made clear when Marvel Studios’ Blade will arrive in theaters, but it’s strongly expected to release sometime in 2024.
