According to recent reports, Marvel Studios' new take on Blade is set to get cameras rolling next month. While Mahershala Ali will be taking on the role of the Daywalker this time around, there have been plenty of fans wondering if Wesley Snipes will make an appearance in the upcoming MCU movie. While the multiverse has opened up plenty of opportunities for some old characters to make surprise appearances, it seems that for now, Snipes appearing in the new movie is not going to be one of them.
Wesley Snipes played Blade in three movies over two decades ago, and now the iconic character is about to make his debut in the MCU. While this has led to the expected comparisons between the two, even before the new movie has been filmed, there has also been the question of whether there is a place for Snipes to make a small cameo appearance in the movie. With older Marvel stars such as Patrick Stewart and Anson Mount returning to play alternative versions of Professor X and Black Bolt respectively in Doctor Strange 2, Snipes addressed whether he will be gearing up for a brief return to his former role. He told ComicBook.com:
"No, not as of yet. I'm still working on my acting skills. So when I come up as an actor, maybe they'll reach out and say, 'Let's have a conversation,' or maybe they don't feel I'm ensemble player."
Wesley Snipes Has Been Supportive of Mahershala Ali as the New Blade
While there has still been little revealed about the upcoming Blade movie, including a release date, there have been plenty of reports about Mahershala Ali taking over the role from Snipes and the latter’s acceptance that the character was always going to be recast, and he was happy to give Ali his blessing to make the character his own. At the time Snipes said:
"Best of luck to Mahershala Ali who's gonna smash it. I'm sure as Blade but he's gonna have a hard time outdoing Wesley Snipes. He will do great."
Snipes also made it clear that he doesn’t believe Blade needs to be an R-rated movie in order to be good. While he recently said that the story is the most important thing, the actor previously commented that Ali does not bear the full weight of the show on his shoulders, as audiences will decide whether it is successful or not based on the entire ensemble. He commented:
“My question is not with him, it’s the people around him. It takes something great and very special to make an iconic film. And you don't even know if it's gonna be iconic until it's done. The people decide it. . . I want the same reaction we got with the versions we did. Audiences in the theater were yelling and clapping. I'm looking for that.”
Blade is one of the movies that could still be released in 2023. Currently, Marvel’s schedule runs up to the release of The Marvels in July 2023, but there was original another untitled Marvel Studios movie slated to come out around October or November. While a release coinciding with Halloween would not be out of the question, it is likely that we will find out more about Blade at D23 Expo this September, when Marvel is expected to announce the next phase of the MCU.