Marvel Studios Temporarily Halts ‘Blade’ Production

Following the departure of director Bassim Tariq, production for the Mahershala Ali-led Blade reboot has temporarily shut down in Atlanta.

Marvel Studios is in even more trouble with Blade. On Tuesday (October 11), it was announced that two weeks following the departure of director Bassim Tariq, production on the Mahershala Ali-led film has temporarily been halted in Atlanta. The project was intended to have began shooting in November, with a release date of November 3, 2023, but with the production delay, it’s unlikely that the film will be ready by then.

“Due to continued shifts in our production schedule, Bassam is no longer moving forward as director of Blade but will remain an executive producer on the film,” Marvel Studios said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. “We appreciate Bassam’s talent and all the work he’s done getting Blade to where it is.”

After several rounds of script rewrites, Beau DeMayo (Moon Knight, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, The Witcher) is now attached as scriptwriter for Blade. The film was announced during the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con, where Ali made an appearance and put on a basketball cap with the film’s logo. Despite his initial excitement about the upcoming reboot, sources have told Ankler reporter Jeff Snider that Ali has grown “frustrated with the process” as the previous script was roughly 90 pages long and featured two “lackluster” action sequences.

As the film’s production is reassessed, Marvel Comics has announced a five-part comic book miniseries about Blade’s daughter, Brielle Brooks, in Bloodline: Daughter of Blade. The book is scheduled to debut next February.