Finally, The Daywalker Has Returned: Mahershala Ali Is Your New Blade
More perfect casting from Marvel.
While Marvel have spent the last five years plumbing through their back catalogue, bringing some of the most obscure heroes in the superpowered canon to the big screen, one ommission has felt increasingly glaring: Blade, the daywalking vampire first introduced by writer Marv Wolfman in 1973.
After all, Blade is one of the most unique protagonists in the comic book world.
The offspring of a vampire and a human, he has all of the powers of bloodsuckers and none of their weaknesses, meaning he is impervious to daylight, crosses, and garlic. Imagine a hair metal comic cover come to life, or the kind of badass that a teenager gorging on horror movies and Conan comics would dream up, and you have Blade.
Now that a new Blade movie is announced, let's remember that time Wesley Snipes was mad at the director of Blade: Trinity so he made the entire cast stay late because he refused to open his eyes for a scene. They ended up just CGing the eyes in. pic.twitter.com/W1QXOr1qlY
— Imran Khan (@imranzomg) July 21, 2019
More than that, the first two Blade films are underrated masterpieces of the superhero canon. The second is a souped-up work of gonzo art directed by Guillermo Del Toro, and the first contains the line, “Some motherfucker’s always trying to ice skate uphill.” What more could you need?
Well, praise be, ’cause after years of onscreen silence, Marvel have finally decided to resuscitate the daywalker: a new Blade movie is coming in the next few years. And, taking over the role from Wesley Snipes is none other than Mahershala Ali, the two-time Oscar winner known for his roles in Alita: Battle Angel and Moonlight.
Better yet, Ali is apparently a massive fan of the property — it was he who called up Marvel boss Kevin Feige and demanded the role.
#Blade is coming. pic.twitter.com/euZgkUQ5O6
— Rotten Tomatoes (@RottenTomatoes) July 21, 2019
“When Mahershala calls, you answer,” Feige told The Hollywood Reporter.
Other details on the forthcoming film are scant — it’s early days, of course, and we don’t even know who is going to direct the film. (Although some are already demanding that Sam Raimi, genius behind the Spider-Man films and modern classic Drag Me To Hell take the reins.)
But hey, at the very least, sure is nice to know the daywalker is coming back our way.