The bold way Mahershala Ali snagged Marvel’s ‘Blade’ Reboot

Jul 22, 2019

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Mahershala Ali is the man of the hour who has muscled his way into snagging Marvel’s Blade movie reboot, a role first made famous by Wesley Snipes.

—Mahershala Ali on ‘Green Book’ amidst N-word controversy: ‘It’s a legitimate offering’—

The announcement was made on Sunday at San Diego’s Comic-Con and we’re here for the newest chocolate sensation who has been cast as the kick-ass vampire hunter.

Ali got a rousing standing ovation during the studio’s Hall H presentation, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

But the way he got the role also deserves a round of applause.

“When Mahershala calls, you answer,” said Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige. Feige explained that after Ali won his Oscar for Green Book, he reached out to Marvel in an effort to secure the coveted role. And he outright told Feige that he wanted the part.

And apparently, what Oscar-winner Mahershala wants, Mahershala gets.

The movie, which centered around a half-human/half-vampire that hunts the undead and ventures out to rid the world of vampires and to serve up some serious payback since it was a vampire who killed his mother during childbirth.

Blade first released in 1998 and received two spin-offs Blade II in 2002 and Blade: Trinity in 2004.

—West Philadelphia man scales 19-story building to save mom from fire—

Ali has also played in countless other roles in movies like Hidden Figures, Alita: Battle Angel and most recently in the third season of HBO’s drama series True Detective.

This is not Ali’s first time finding himself in the world of Marvel. He received wide praise for his role as Cottonmouth Stokes during the first season of the Netflix series Luke Cage, and most recently he portrayed Prowler in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

A release date for the movie hasn’t been announced.

Just announced in Hall H at #SDCC, Marvel Studios’ BLADE with Mahershala Ali. pic.twitter.com/mtrDBy5OV0

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) July 21, 2019