Wesley Snipes' Blade trilogy is heading to Hulu.
The three Marvel films are currently available on Tubi but will be added to Hulu's streaming lineup on October 1 in time for the Halloween season. The first film in the supernatural-infused superhero franchise, Blade, was released in 1998. Directed by Stephen Norrington, the film starred Snipes as the titular Daywalker, a human-vampire hybrid with supernatural abilities who hunted bloodsuckers with an arsenal of high-tech gadgets. The film was an unexpected hit with audiences and was followed by two sequels: Guillermo Del Toro's Blade II in 2002 and David S. Goyer's Blade: Trinity in 2004.
The Blade trilogy's success at the box office has been credited with paving the way for other Marvel Comics adaptations like Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy and the 20th Century Fox X-Men series. Snipes recently touched on the Blade films' unexpected and undying legacy and what it meant to him. "It’s amazing," he said in July 2022. "In the beginning, my motivation for doing the first Blade project was to have fun and to do something I knew my homeboys and homegirls would absolutely love. The ones from the martial arts world. The ones from the Shaft world, and the ones who love Kung-fu and all that [Laughs]. We knew that would be attractive to that niche audience, but I had no idea it would have broader appeal."
Mahershala Ali Is the New Blade
Marvel Studios is currently developing a reboot of Blade with Mahershala Ali set to play the titular Daywalker. Production on Blade was scheduled to begin in Oct. 2022 but filming is rumored to have been delayed following Bassam Tariq's exit as director earlier this month. No explanation was given for his decision to step down except for "continued shifts in [the film's] production schedule." Tariq will remain involved in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film as an executive producer. His exit was swiftly followed by reports that claimed Ali was frustrated with the film's lackluster screenplay and that Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has been spread too thin.
X-Men '97 head writer Beau DeMayo has reportedly replaced original Blade scribe Stacy Amma Osei-Kuffour as the upcoming film's official writer, though her involvement has not been confirmed by Marvel as of this writing. Also unconfirmed are reports that Osei-Kuffour's Blade script was a period piece set in the early 20th century and included European vampires. Marvel has not commented on the rumored plot details at this time.
The Blade trilogy will be available to stream on Hulu on Oct. 1. Marvel Studios' Blade reboot is currently scheduled to open in theaters on November 3, 2023.
Source: ComicBook.com