Marvel Studios angers fans by ditching Blade reboot starring Mahershala Ali from release calendar

Marvel Studios and Disney angered fans on Tuesday by quietly removing their long-delayed Blade reboot – which was set to hit theaters on November 7, 2025 – from the release calendar.

At 50, two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali is only 12 years older than original star Wesley Snipes, but he signed on five years ago to replace him as the half-vampire, vampire hunter Eric Brooks.

‘We are working on it. That’s the best I can tell you,” said Mahershala (née Mahershalalhashbaz). EW on December 5.

‘I am very encouraged by the direction of the project. I think we’ll be back at it relatively soon.”

Ali made his MCU debut in 2016 as Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes in the Netflix series Luke Cage, and he provided an off-camera voiceover as Blade for the post-credits scene of Marvel’s failed 2021 franchise film, Eternals.

At 50, two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali (pictured March 10) is just 12 years older than original star Wesley Snipes, but he signed on five years ago to replace him as the half-vampire, vampire hunter Eric Brooks.

Fans can thank Ryan Reynolds for sparking renewed interest in Wesley as Blade after he reprized the role in Shawn Levy’s critically acclaimed blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine, which grossed $1.337 billion worldwide.

“There has only been one Blade,” the Independent Spirit Award nominee warned ominously at gunpoint in the film. “There will only be one Blade.”

The wisecracking Canadian – who turned 48 on Wednesday – led a social media campaign in August to get Snipes “a Logan-esque send-off,” just like his friend Hugh Jackman did for Wolverine.

Ryan – who has 122.6 million social media followers – tweeted: ‘There is no Fox Marvel Universe or MCU without Blade creating a market first. He’s Marvel Daddy.’

Wesley broke two Guinness World Records with Deadpool & Wolverine – longest career as a live-action Marvel character (1998’s Blade) and longest gap between character appearances (since 2004’s Blade: Trinity).

Reactions to Tuesday’s news were swift, with fans demanding Snipes’ return to the “cursed” film and accusing Marvel of “dirtying Mahershala Ali.”

Instgram user @its.beezy_ responded to the news: “Wesley put a curse on this movie, I’m convinced.”

‘It hurts that Mahershala is disrespected in this way [for real]wrote Instagram user @jpeeezy_.

Mahershala made his MCU debut in 2016 as Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes in the Netflix series Luke Cage, and he provided an off-camera voiceover as Blade for the post-credits scene of Marvel’s failed 2021 franchise film, Eternals (pictured)

Fans can thank Ryan Reynolds (2-R) for sparking renewed interest in Wesley (2-L) as Blade after he reprized the role in Shawn Levy’s critically acclaimed blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine, which grossed $1.337 billion at the worldwide box office

“There has only been one Blade,” the Independent Spirit Award nominee warned ominously at gunpoint in the film. ‘There will only be one Blade’

The wisecracking Canadian – who turned 48 on Wednesday – led a social media campaign in August that gave Snipes “a Logan-esque send-off,” just like his friend Hugh Jackman did for Wolverine

Wesley broke two Guinness World Records with Deadpool & Wolverine – longest career as a live-action Marvel character (1998’s Blade, pictured) and longest gap between character appearances (since 2004’s Blade: Trinity)

Reaction to Tuesday’s news was swift, with fans demanding Snipes’ return to the ‘cursed’ film and accusing Marvel of ‘dirtying Mahershala Ali’

Instagram user @jasonn2255_ wrote, “Bring back Wesley Snipes!”

‘It hurts that Mahershala is disrespected in this way [for real]wrote Instagram user @jpeeezy_. ‘Oscar winner, incredible actor and they can’t give my husband a good script and production’

Instagram user @vibeworldx agreed: ‘[To be honest] I love Wesley Snipes, but Mahershala deserved the role as much as anyone else. Man is an Oscar winner. I want him as Blade. Wesley has already done well. I’m ready for a new interpretation.’

‘Why hasn’t Ali stopped yet? He’s already 50. Dude isn’t getting any younger,” @there_will_be_josh commented

Instagram user @jasito1985 commented: ‘His @deadpool quote lives on’

“Oscar winner, incredible actor and they can’t give my husband a good script and production.”

Instagram user @vibeworldx agreed: ‘[To be honest] I love Wesley Snipes, but Mahershala deserved the role as much as anyone else. Man is an Oscar winner. I want him as Blade. Wesley has already done well. I’m ready for a new interpretation.’

‘Why hasn’t Ali stopped yet? He’s already 50. Dude isn’t getting any younger,” @there_will_be_josh commented.

Instagram user @jasito1985 commented, “His @deadpool quote lives on.”

The Blade reboot has been plagued by delays, setbacks and strikes, starting with the departure of director Bassam Tariq in 2022 – who was then replaced by Yann Demange, who left the troubled film in June.

Transformers One screenwriter Eric Pearson was hired after signings from Michael Green, Stacy Osei-Kuffour, Michael Starrbury, Beau DeMayo and Nic Pizzolatto.