Marvel has officially confirmed a new Blade movie is on the way, with Oscar winner Mahershala Ali taking over the titular role. It's an interesting announcement which may come as a surprise for some, but for the artist BossLogic, it's no shock at all. Known for creating art depicting how certain actors or actresses might look in various roles, BossLogic has been behind some very convincing fan art posters which have received a lot of attention online. As it turns out, one of his fan casting choice was for Ali to play a new version of Blade, which we all know now is exactly what's going to happen.

Back in February, the artist had just watched the tremendously successful movie Alita: Battle Angel. In the movie, Ali plays the part of Vector, serving as a prominent antagonist. Impressed with the performance, BossLogic envisioned Ali next playing the part of the half-human, half-vampire vampire hunter Blade in a new Marvel movie. He then created and uploaded a custom poster for a Blade movie starring Ali, describing it as "another quick piece I wanted to do after watching Alita." The image was convincing enough to go viral, and we even covered it here at MovieWeb when it first hit the web.

What's most interesting about this prediction is that there was no indication whatsoever Mahershala Ali was in the running to play the part. There had been some rumblings in the rumor mill for years about Wesley Snipes returning to the franchise in a new sequel, but no confirmation another movie was even in consideration. Apparently, it was Ali himself who orchestrated his own casting by contacting Marvel head Kevin Feige to suggest himself as Blade. "When Mahershala calls, you answer," Feige says about the decision to grant the award-winning actor his special request to be the new Blade.

Of course, the upcoming Blade reboot being part of Marvel Phase 5 is just one of Marvel's many exciting announcements to come out of San Diego Comic-Con. Some of the other major reveals include Thor: Love and Thunder, Black Widow, Black Panther 2, Doctor Strange: In the Multiverse of Madness, and much more. While there are so many awesome new movies from the company to look forward to, it does feel odd to see there are no more Avengers movies on the slate for Phase 4. It's certainly a new beginning for the Marvel Cinematic Universe moving forward, but chances are, each new entry will be big money-makers at the box office. If any will be able to come close (or even outdo) the record set by Avengers: Endgame remains to be seen.

BossLogic might have been dead-on with his perceived Blade casting, but he remains modest about the accurate prediction. "Credit goes to Marvel Studios for making the best decision ever with Mahershala Ali with Blade," the artist says in a recent tweet. However, even if the fan art's accuracy is nothing more than a coincidence, it's definitely an impressive peek into the future. You can take a look at the original fan art below, courtesy of BossLogic on Twitter.