Few creatures are as intriguing in comic books and movies as vampires. They can serve as either dangerous antagonists or compelling protagonists. Despite the vampire's endurance in pop culture, they have yet to arrive in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, in 2017, their existence was finally confirmed by the unlikeliest of characters.
Around forty minutes into Thor: Ragnarok, Thor and the Kronan warrior Korg are preparing for battle. Korg offers the Avenger a wooden trident. He then admits that the weapon would only be useful if three vampires happened to be huddled together. With that throwaway line, Korg confirmed the existence of space vampires in the MCU.
The probable reason why Korg made a reference to vampires in Ragnarok is that he's played by the film's director Taika Waititi. Waititi also wrote, directed and starred in What We Do in the Shadows, a comedy about three vampires, which was later adapted into a television series on FX. Since the vampires are stuck living together in the movie, it's possible that they could be simultaneously killed with Korg's wooden trident.
While Waititi likely used the Ragnarok line as a clever What We Do in the Shadows reference, it's still a huge reveal about the MCU's vampires. Although the fanged creatures have yet to appear in this universe, they still played an essential role in Marvel film history. The Blade movie trilogy starring Wesley Snipes helped kickstart the Marvel superhero movie boom of the early 2000s and the eventual birth of the MCU. The Blade franchise's villains were vampires, and the titular hero was a vampire-human hybrid, proving that the bloodsuckers had a place in comic book adaptations.
Despite the Blade franchise being on hold for over a decade following the disappointing Blade: Trinity, the character is finally getting the MCU treatment with an upcoming film starring Oscar-winner Mahershala Ali. Sony is also making a movie about the living vampire and enemy of Spider-Man, Morbius, which is rumored to also be a part of the MCU. Considering Korg and Thor are well aware of space vampires, it's plausible they could make an appearance in Thor: Love and Thunder, especially since Waititi is returning to direct and play Korg again.
Of course, vampires have had quite a history in Marvel comics. Due to the Comic Codes Authority, vampires were restricted from being used in Marvel until those rules were relaxed in the early '70s, leading to the introduction of Morbius in the Spider-Man issues. Count Dracula, the most famous vampire of them all, arrived in the comics with 1972's Tomb of Dracul, which also led to the introduction of Blade in the series' tenth issue.
In the years since, the bloodsuckers have done battle against the X-Men and the Avengers. From 2010 to 2011 the X-Men battled vampires in the Curse of the X-Men series after a bomb goes off in San Francisco Union Square, covering Jubilee and others in blood that converted them into vampires and kicked off a vampirism plague. Likewise, the Avengers dealt with vampires in the King in Black series. Dracula was the leader of his own vampire nation, and the heroes had no choice but to strike a deal with the Count to fight Knull and his symbiote armies. In the animated series Avengers Assemble, they also had to fight Dracula after Black Widow was partially converted by him in the episode "Blood Feud."
While the MCU hasn't had the need to use vampires yet, there are plenty of storylines and characters to use as inspiration for future films and series. Time has proven that vampires are a box-office draw. With comic's most famous vampire hunter Blade about to debut in the universe, it looks like they will arrive sooner rather than later.