Marvel’s Blade Reboot’s Tormented Production Timeline Explained
Few Marvel projects have been received with as much enthusiasm as when the studio announced a Sheet film starring a two-time Academy Award winner in the title role. But in the five years since that announcement, the film has gone through countless delays and recasts, firings and hirings. And then there were the quiet periods without any updates, leaving us wondering if the MCU’s Blade reboot is still happening.
To help you stay up to date on all the happenings surrounding Marvel’s tortured Sheet movie, we’ve put together a complete timeline of everything that happened, from the moment it was announced until now. We’ve also included notes on the movies and shows that likely prompted Marvel to hire each person who’s been through the project, and explained the reasoning behind their joining in the first place.
Image: HBO
Marvel announced the casting of Mahershala Ali in a revamped Blade film at 2019’s San Diego Comic-Con, just months after Avengers: Endgame was released. At the time, the MCU was at its peak of popularity and profitability, and Marvel confidently greenlit a slew of ambitious future projects. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige had met Ali a few months earlier, and when Ali said he wanted to make a new film about Marvel Comics’ vampire hunter Blade, the studio went to work figuring out how to make it happen.
Video explaining it: Green Book. Ali won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for that film in February 2019 — his second, after winning the same award for his role in the 2017 film. Moonlight.
In 2021, Marvel announced that Stacy Osei-Kuffour had been hired to write the film. At the time, The Hollywood Reporter reported that the studio spent more than six months talking to writers and consulting Ali before choosing Osei-Kuffour, a veteran playwright, for the project.
Series that explains it: HBO’s GuardsOsei-Kuffour was a writer and story editor for that 2019 series.
Bassam Tariq was the first director brought in to direct Sheet. According to DeadlineMarvel initially considered hiring a writer-director for the job, but ultimately decided to split the responsibilities between Osei-Kuffour and Tariq.
Video explaining it: Mogul MowgliTariq’s critically acclaimed 2020 drama.
Image: Marvel Studios
Tariq left the project shortly before the scheduled November 2022 filming, delaying production. Marvel a statement issued He said his departure was due to “ongoing shifts in our production schedule,” although rumors suggested that creative differences over the film’s storyline the real reason was.
About the same time, future X-Men ’97 maker Beau DeMayo may have become involved in the project as a writer, although Disney never confirmed whether he was officially assigned to that role, or in what capacity.
Series that explains it: 2022’s Moon KnightDeMayo’s first Marvel project, where he served as a writer.
Yann Demange signed on as director shortly after Tariq’s departure, while Michael Starrbury was brought in to write a new scriptAt that time, Marvel was still working primarily with lesser-known directors and writers who had never worked on major projects before.
The shows that explain it: Demange directed episodes of HBO’s Lovecraft country shortly before taking the Sheet job, while Starrbury wrote for Ava DuVernay’s show When they see us from 2019.
HBO via Polygon
Nic Pizzolatto joined the film as a new writer in 2023although it was unclear whether he had to improve Starrbury’s script or start over. Mia Goth also joined the cast at the same time.
The series that explains it: Pizzolatto’s previous project was season 3 of Real Detectivestarring Ali.
a Variation article published in November 2023 detailed a series of issues facing Marvel Studios, including problems with the Sheet production, including serious disagreements between Marvel and Ali over the direction of the film. One of the most interesting of these anecdotes suggested a particularly surprising direction the film almost took:
“Someone familiar with the script permutations says that at some point the story changed to a female-led story full of life lessons. Blade was demoted to the fourth lead.”
The article also noted that Michael Green had been hired to start from scratch on a new script for the film. Unlike previous picks for the project, Green had extensive experience with superheroes and blockbusters. At the same time, the film’s planned release date was pushed back from 2024 to February 2025, and later to November 2025.
The movie that explains it: Logan. Green co-wrote the script, and when it comes to adult superhero films, it’s hard to find a more impressive credit than this one.
Demange left the film this year, along with with actor Delroy Lindowhich initially joined the project in November 2021. Marvel veteran Eric Pearson has joined as new writerAlthough Pearson is the fifth writer attached to the project so far, it appears he is starting from scratch with the script again.
Movies that explain it: Pearson is Marvel’s steady hand of the moment, and the man they send all their most difficult projects to. Pearson was one of the writers for Black Widowand even more recently wrote the scripts for the upcoming Fantastic four movie and the MCU Phase 5 finale Lightning bolts*.
Photo: Jay Maidment/20th Century Studios, Marvel Studios
Before the release of Deadpool and WolverineDisney’s first R-rated Marvel film, Feige confirmed that Sheet will also receive an R ratingand said the studio is working hard to complete the film and that they are not rushing it.
It’s unclear at this point where Pearson is in the script process, or who will direct. Sheet once he’s finished writing it. Despite all the reportedly serious disagreements along the way, Ali will still star in the film, which is scheduled for release on November 7, 2025 — for now. Polygon will continue to update this timeline as new reports emerge about the status of Marvel’s Sheet movie.