Mahershala Ali says Marvel's 'Blade' reboot is dead: 'They didn't want to do it, so I moved on'

Mahershala Ali has confirmed that Marvel Studios' long-delayed Blade reboot is no longer happening, saying he has officially moved on from the troubled project after years of delays, script rewrites and creative shake-ups.

The two-time Oscar winner said that if Marvel had truly wanted to make the film, it would already have happened. Instead, he is now focused on his upcoming film Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, which he believes is a better fit for the kind of work he wants to be known for.

"The best way I can answer this question is, when I look at what is for me, is it was either this or that — and I'll take this," Ali was quoted as saying by IGN, referring to his new film.


Ali said he has learned over nearly three decades in the industry that some projects simply are not meant to happen.

"No offense to them. I've been doing this professionally for pushing 30 years now, and one thing I've learned is that what is for you is for you and what is not is not. For whatever reason, that project is not for me. If they wanted to do it, we would've done it. So I have to move on, and I have moved on."

The actor added that he could not have filmed both projects simultaneously. Ironically, the collapse of Blade gave director Bassam Tariq the opportunity to develop Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother and eventually bring Ali on board.

Ali also said the martial arts and physical training he underwent for Blade was not wasted.

"And I was able to use those skills that I had been working on for over a year training for Blade. In that way, I feel creatively redeemed on some level, just in my own journey between me, myself, and I. But I feel ready to move on from the Blade questions. Those questions are for them. They didn't want to do it, so they should answer that question."

A project plagued by delays

Marvel Studios first announced the Blade reboot at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019, with Ali set to take over the role of the iconic vampire hunter. However, the film was repeatedly delayed as it cycled through multiple writers, directors and script revisions before eventually being shelved.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige later admitted the studio could not crack the project creatively.

"We didn't feel confident that we could do that on Blade, and we didn't want to do that to Mahershala and didn't want to do that to us."

Feige also described the collapse of the reboot as making him feel like a "gigantic loser and failure."

The film reportedly went through several different concepts, including a version set in the 1920s.

Actress Mia Goth revealed she had already completed a chemistry test with Ali, along with costume and wig fittings, before that version of the film was abandoned.

"The furthest that it got with me was... I flew to Atlanta and did a chemistry test with Mahershala. I did a costume fitting and a wig fitting. I was very excited in the direction it was going and Mahershala had such an interesting take on it, he was great. And it just unravelled from there, unfortunately."

According to reports, wardrobe created for supporting artists on Blade was later sold and reused in the period vampire film Sinners.

David S. Goyer, who wrote and directed parts of Wesley Snipes' original Blade trilogy, previously said he was baffled by the reboot's prolonged development.

"I would. I've always loved the character and I love him. I've been sitting on the sidelines wondering, 'What in the world is going on? Why is it taking so long?' Because I'm a huge Marvel fan myself, and I've just been totally puzzled."

Meanwhile, Wesley Snipes briefly returned as Blade in Deadpool & Wolverine, and Ryan Reynolds has expressed interest in giving Snipes' version of the character a proper send-off with a standalone film.

What's next for Blade?

The future of Blade in the Marvel Cinematic Universe remains uncertain. Although the standalone reboot has now been abandoned, speculation continues that Marvel could eventually introduce the vampire hunter through a future Midnight Sons project. With Ryan Gosling confirmed to play Ghost Rider in an MCU film slated for 2028, fans believe the studio may still have long-term supernatural plans, though Blade's role in those plans remains unclear.