Blade’s delay doesn’t mean Mahershala Ali’s done with the MCU

Great news, blood suckers; you don’t have to worry about a certain vampire hunter showing up any time soon because the upcoming Blade movie has been delayed, seemingly indefinitely.

The Mahershala Ali-led superhero movie was supposed to hit theaters in late 2025 as part of Marvel’s Phase 6, but it’s disappeared from cinema schedules, and no new release date has been announced.

At the time of writing, Marvel Studios has offered no official explanation for Blade’s vanishing act. Yet, Cosmic Circus – a scooper with a decent track record – has claimed the MCU movie has been dropped because it’s not part of the wider multiverse saga.

Supposedly, Blade – along with Armor Wars and Nova – just don’t fit into the grand narrative the Marvel bigwigs are trying to tell. Of course, that’s disappointing news for fans of Marvel’s day walker, but it’s not the end of the world.

Blade’s not dead

Warner Bros.

Blade hasn’t been officially canceled, and despite rumors about friction behind the scenes, Ali is still attached to star in the film. 

So, while it’s annoying that we won’t get to see Blade stopping a vampire apocalypse next year, it seems very likely he’ll be staking plasma-thirsty ghouls and taking undead names once Marvel’s done with Secret Wars. 

Of course, it’s important to remember that just because Blade the movie has been pulled, that doesn’t mean we won’t see Blade the character. The MCU has a long tradition of introducing characters in other projects (lest we forget, Blade had a voice cameo in the woefully underappreciated Eternals), and I think we’ll likely see him again before too long.

Why? Well, partly because Mahershala Ali needs the work (it’s been five years since this film was announced) and secondly because Marvel needs to remind people why they should excited about a Blade standalone film. 

The Daywalker arrives

Warner Bros.

I honestly expect another Blade cameo in the next 18 months or so, and while there’s nothing on the release schedule that seems particularly good for the half-vampire yet, that doesn’t mean they won’t jam him in somewhere (I mean, did you expect him to cameo in Eternals?) or announce something appropriate for the vampire hunter. 

This actually links to another thing that Cosmic Circus claims. They say that Blade will form a fundamental part of the MCU’s future as a member of the Midnight Sons (a sort of spooky Avengers), and he’ll play a significant role in the supernatural side of the MCU. Supposedly this is why Ali’s not left the film because he knows if he can stick it out, blood won’t be the only thing he’s sucking on; he’ll be sucking down caviar he bought with his mountains of Marvel moolah. 

In all seriousness, though, the MCU has barely explored the supernatural side of Marvel comics, and the stuff they have done – Werewolf by Night and Agatha All Along – have both been hits with fans as well as critics. From a business perspective, it makes sense to go a bit deeper into this weird world and really embrace the stranger side of Marvel. 

It’s important to remember that stuff like Werewolf by Night isn’t as resource-intensive as other major Marvel projects. Werewolf by Night only went into production in August 2021, and the special was out by October 2022! For a Marvel show, that’s lightning-fast. It’s more than feasible for Marvel to announce another standalone Halloween special (or any holiday; I don’t think we should stereotype vampire hunters as inherently spooky) soon and turn it around in 18 months. 

So things might look a bit bleak for Blade right now, and I understand the disappointment but don’t worry, this is one vampire hunter who won’t be ice skating uphill forever.  If you want to learn more about upcoming Marvel movies check out our articles, breaking down everything you need to know about Captain America 4, Thunderbolts, and Avengers Doomsday.