Mahershala Ali's Blade Movie Project Reportedly Dead

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Mahershala Ali's Blade Movie Project Reportedly Dead

May 21,25

It seems as though the highly anticipated Blade movie has finally run out of steam. The once-upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film has faced numerous hurdles over the years, and it now appears the project has officially stalled, with little hope of revival. This means fans won’t see Mahershala Ali donning the iconic Daywalker role anytime soon, which is undoubtedly a significant disappointment for the MCU community.

Rapper and artist Flying Lotus took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) this week to discuss his involvement in the project, inadvertently confirming that Blade is no longer moving forward. "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," said the DJ, who recently directed Shudder’s new sci-fi horror ASH. "Maybe it'll come around again but I doubt it. Would have been fun tho."

The day before Flying Lotus' tweet, renowned costume designer Ruth E. Carter, during an appearance on The John Campea Show, confirmed her role in the film's early stages. She revealed that Blade was intended to be set in the 1920s, promising some truly unique and captivating costume and production designs.

Adding to the series of unfortunate updates, actor Delroy Lindo, who was set to star alongside Ali, also spoke about the project's collapse just days before Carter’s revelation. "When Marvel came to me, they seemed to be really interested in my input," he told *Entertainment Weekly*. "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 back in 2019, with the initial plan being a release in November 2025. However, the project has seen multiple directors come and go, including Yann Demange and Bassam Tariq, without any sticking long enough to bring the vision to life.

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View 18 ImagesDespite the setbacks, it's been only six months since Blade was removed from Marvel’s release schedule in October 2024, and no new release date has been confirmed. Yet, a month after the film was pulled, MCU boss Kevin Feige expressed the studio’s continued commitment to the project. "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," he told Omelete in November 2024. "But I can tell you that the character will indeed make it to the MCU."

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