Marvel’s much-anticipated Blade reboot has added a very exciting writer to development today, as The Hollywood Reporter exclusively reveals that True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto is on board to pen the vamp thriller. The project will mark a reunion between Pizzolatto and star Mahershala Ali who starred in the third season of HBO’s anthology crime drama series, where his performance as detective Wayne Hays saw him nominated for an Emmy.
According to THR’s sources, Pizzolatto is working off a draft script from Michael Starrbury (When They See Us) as we previously reported, and has been ‘keyboarding for a few weeks now.’
Hearing Pizzolatto is onboard makes for another extremely exciting piece of Blade news we’ve had recently, since we learned a couple of weeks ago that Pearl superstar Mia Goth had joined the cast in an as-of-now unannounced role, as well the always-excellent Delroy Lindo. These additions behind and in front of the camera make for a powerhouse of a team that includes the directorial prowess of Lovecraft Country’s Yann Demange and of course the Oscar-winning Ali in the role as the titular daywalker.
Having Pizzolatto in the writer’s chair also lends credence to the rumors that Blade will be ‘darker and grittier’ than your average Marvel fare – just look at any episode of True Detective season 1, for reference. Whether or not the upcoming Blade will be closer in tone to the 1998 Wesley Snipes-starring original remains to be seen, but we’re very intrigued to see this team’s take on a blood rave.
Sadly, we’ve still got a while to wait and find out, as THR reminds us that Blade is set to start production towards the end of May, with a release date of Septempter 6, 2024. But after the movie’s rocky beginnings, we’re just happy to see the damn thing finally happening. Stay tuned for all the updates as we get them!
