Mahershala Ali Calls Out Marvel for Not Making ‘Blade’: ‘You Had Me Under Contract. They Have Billions of Dollars. If They Wanted to Do It, We Would’ve Done It’

Mahershala Ali has addressed the cancellation of the planned Blade film, marking the end of a project that was announced with much fanfare at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019. Despite the initial announcement and the hiring of directors like Bassam Tariq and Yann Demange, the movie never moved into production.

Ali reflected on the situation by highlighting the contractual nature of his involvement with the studio. He noted that while he held a contract with Marvel, the studio chose not to move forward with the project despite their significant financial resources. The actor stated that if they had wanted to produce the movie, it would have been completed.

Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige previously shared his own frustration regarding the project, labeling the inability to get the film off the ground as a personal failure. Feige explained that the studio did not feel the script met their standards for quality, and they chose not to proceed rather than release a film that failed to hit their expectations.

Following the cancellation, Ali has moved on to other work, including the Amazon MGM film titled Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother. This new project reunites him with director Bassam Tariq, a collaboration that Ali notes was only possible because their time was no longer tied to the stalled vampire film. He views this new endeavor as a positive outcome for his career.