Marvel‘s delayed Blade movie has been removed from Disney’s release schedule.
The reboot was slated for release on Nov. 7, 2025, but has now been replaced by Predator: Badlands. A new release date has not been disclosed.
Marvel Studios also announced three untitled films set for release on Feb. 18, 2028, May 5, 2028, and Nov. 10, 2028.
The movie, which cast Mahershala Ali as the titular vampire-slaying superhero made famous by Wesley Snipes in the 1998 original — which spawned two sequels and a TV series — has faced many setbacks, from losing directors and cast members to being pushed back by years.
Marvel boss Kevin Feige admitted a few months back that they were still “trying to crack” the movie and don’t want to rush it.
“For the last two years as we’ve been trying to crack that movie, the most important thing for us is not rushing it and making sure we are making the right Blade movie,” Feige told BlackTree TV.
He went on to insist the team plans to follow in the footsteps of Marvel’s Deadpool franchise by keeping Blade with a restrictive adults-only age rating.
“There were some great Blade movies years ago — they were all rated R. So, I think that’s, like Deadpool, inherent with the character of Blade.” Feige added.
The movie has already gone through two directors: Bassam Tariq was the first to go, followed by Yann Demange.
Oscar-winning actor Ali is to star alongside Mia Goth as the villain Lilith. And Goth recently insisted the project is being handled with care.
“[The cast and crew] really care; they do. They want to make a great movie. That’s the sense that I get from them, and that feels good,” she told Deadline.com.
The script comes from Black Widow and Thor: Ragnarok scribe Eric Pearson and “True Detective” creator Nic Pizzolatto.
“Blade, lordy lordy lordy! Folks still lookin’ for the secret sauce, ridin’ snowmobiles in traffic, kinda rough. Daywalkers make it look easy, don’t they?” Snipes wrote in a post on X recently about the production’s delays.
In an interview with Uproxx, Snipes did puts his support behind Ali.
“I don’t have any involvement, but I support the young artists, and I support Marvel in their business decisions. It’s a beautiful thing. I think he’s a heck of a job. He’s got a heck of a job on his hands,” Snipes said.
