Blade debuted in 1998 to commercial success and spawned two more films. The films starred Wesley Snipes as the titular character and were based on the Marvel Comics character created by Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan. The movies were some of the first based off comic book characters and showed just how successful they could be.
Fans have been wanting to see Blade return to the big screen or the small screen for some time now. Wesley Snipes took to Twitter to reveal who he thinks should take up the titular character if Marvel Studios decides to bring the character back to live-action.
When anyone asks "Who could be the next Blade?" 💥👋🏿 you already know there's only one Blade fam! #Blade pic.twitter.com/LXAEo297ST
— Wesley Snipes (@wesleysnipes) December 23, 2017
Snipes reveals there is only one person who he thinks should play Blade and it’s him!
I’m not surprised by that statement. If you kept up with Snipes over the years, his love for the character helped to bring Blade on to the screen during a time when comic book movies weren’t considered much of value.
The 55-year-old actor might seem to be a bit past his prime, but with his extensive experience in martial arts, he could easily fill the role again. He’s been training since he was twelve years old in a variety of arts. He obtained a fifth-degree black belt in Shotokan, and a 2nd-degree black belt in Hapkido while also training in Brazilian Jujitsu and Kickboxing.
If you watch the fight scenes in the first two Blade movies you can clearly see the Shotokan influence in his style. I have no reservations about seeing him return if he’s kept up on his martial training.
One thing that might complicate things now is that Marvel Studios required the film rights to Blade back in 2013. It’s possible Marvel Studios might look to introduce Blade into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but I find it difficult to believe it will include Snipes as the titular character.
It’s more than likely Marvel Studios will want to cast a much younger actor who could play Blade for quite some time. It’s possible Wesley Snipes could be involved as a mentor for the new Blade. Or maybe Marvel Studios will have Snipes continue to play Blade as he trains his daughter Fallon Grey. Marvel Comics did have a planned series involving Blade and his daughter, but it was cancelled after writer Tim Seeley quit the project because he thought a “black woman might right this stuff better than me.”
Regardless, Snipes still has passion for the character and appears to want to bring the daywalker back to audiences.
What do you think, should Wesley Snipes reprise the role of Blade, or should someone else take on the role?