With the Infinity Saga in the rear view, Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is introducing a ton of new characters to help fill out the ranks. One of the highly anticipated heroes finally joining the franchise is the vampire hero Blade. OG Blade Wesley Snipes recently revealed what he thinks will decide the reboot’s success…. and it’s not Maheshala Ali.
Not much is known about the MCU’s developing Blade movie, and fans were thrilled to learn that Oscar winner Mahershala Ali would be playing the role. He’s got some big shoes to fill given Wesley Snipes’ iconic performance in his own trilogy. Snipes previously threw his support behind the Moonlight actor, and has now addressed who will decide the movie’s success: the fans. As he put it,
My question is not with him, it’s the people around him. It takes something great and very special to make an iconic film. And you don't even know if it's gonna be iconic until it's done. The people decide it. . . . I want the same reaction we got with the versions we did. Audiences in the theater were yelling and clapping. I'm looking for that.
He’s got a point. The original Blade movie came before superhero movies were a popular genre, and scenes like the blood rave definitely elicited a strong reaction from audiences. That reaction led to a full trilogy ultimately being built around Wesley Snipes’ vampiric hero.
Wesley Snipes’ comments to ET Online shows how the iconic actor has continued to be a class act regarding the upcoming Blade reboot. While he understandably has some ownership over the Marvel hero, he seems to have a great attitude about the new version heading to theaters. And fans can’t wait to see how vampires will factor into the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe.
While Mahershala Ali has some big shoes to fill as Marvel’s Blade, his career and filmography truly speak for themselve. Ali is a massively acclaimed actor whose work has two Oscars under his belt. It just the type of A-listers that the MCU tends to attract these days.
Funny enough, Mahershala Ali actually already appeared in the MCU-- although it was on the small screen. He played the villainous Cottonmouth in Season 1 of Netflix’s Luke Cage. But this time he’s playing another character, and will factor into the big screen adventures of the franchise.
While Marvel fans will continue waiting for the Blade movie, Mahershala Ali technically already made his debut as the character formerly occupied by Wesley Snipes. Ali’s voice was briefly heard in the end-credits scene of Eternals, speaking to Kit Harington’s Dane Whitman. It remains to be seen how these two characters might interact in the future.
Eternals is in theaters now and Blade is currently expected to arrive sometime during Phase Four. In the meantime, check out the 2021 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
