by Rayne McKinney

There has been talk about Blade coming to the MCU for quite some time now, and those rumors have finally been leaked and confirmed. Mahershala Ali is set to play the role of Blade in the MCU.

#MarvelStudios' #Blade director has opened up about development on the #MCU reboot: "Where our character has to go is gonna be really important…" Full quote: https://t.co/8kengOYPKu pic.twitter.com/PcOgWPEafn

— MCU – The Direct (@MCU_Direct) September 2, 2021

Ali made his first appearance in the MCU in the new Eternals movie. Ali was introduced at the end of the movie’s “post-credits” having a voiceover scene talking about the Ebony Blade.

We have seen Blade before in the three-film series in the late 90’s – early 2000’s. The character Blade himself is a half-mortal, half-immortal vampire hunter set out to avenge his mother’s death and rid the world of the “bloodsuckers,” as he says. The original actor in the first three films, Wesley Snipes, praises and gives props to Ali for landing the role of the vigilante himself. Ali says he is “humbled and encouraged” by Snipes. This is a major opportunity for Ali and his career, he says, “I’m excited and ready to get going.”

The 2022 films Blade and Morbius are coming. Blade (the vampire hunter) and Morbius (the living vampire) have actually teamed up before in the comics of the Midnight Sons but Morbius has also died at the hands of Blade. Morbius and Blade got into a battle and Morbius bested him and bit Blade, this turned him into the ravenous daywalker he is today and started it all. Hopefully, the MCU brings the two together for one epic on-screen battle.