Original ‘Blade’ Star Wesley Snipes Pokes Fun at Marvel’s Struggling ‘Blade’ Reboot After Second Director Exits the Movie: ‘Folks Still Lookin’ for the Secret Sauce’

Zack Sharf
·2-min read

Originally “Blade” star Wesley Snipes is saying “lordy lordy lordy” to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which continues to hit speed bumps during the development of a new “Blade” movie that is set to star Oscar winner Mahershala Ali as the eponymous vampire hunter. The most recent hiccup for the MCU’s “Blade” arrived June 12, when it was announced that director Yann Damage was exiting the movie and that a new screenwriter,  Eric Pearson (“The Fantastic Four,” “Black Widow,” “Thor: Ragnarok”), was coming on board .

“Blade, lordylordylordy,” Snipes reacted on Twitter alongside the side eye emoji. “Folks still lookin for the secret sauce, ridin snowmobiles in traffic, kinda rough. Daywalkers make it look easy, don’t they?”

More from Variety

Marvel announced a “Blade” movie with Ali in July 2019. Bassam Tariq was the first director to join the project, although he exited in September 2022 roughly two months before the film was set to begin filming. Several screenwriters have also been announced through the years, from “Watchmen” scribe Stacy Osei-Kuffour to Michael Starrbury.

Variety reported last November that “Blade” had gone through at least five writers by that time. One person familiar with the script changes said the story at one point morphed into a narrative led by women and filled with life lessons. Speculation at the time said that Marvel was still looking to make the film but on a budget of less than $100 million.

Snipes debuted as “Blade” in the 1998 movie of the same name and reprised the character in 2002’s “Blade II,” directed by Guillermo del Toro, and 2004’s “Blade: Trinity.” Stephen Dorff, who co-starred with Snipes in the first movie, previously mocked Marvel for struggling to get its own “Blade” off the ground.

“Marvel is used to me trashing them anyway,” Dorff told The Daily Beast last year. “How’s that PG ‘Blade’ movie going for you, that can’t get a director? [laughs] Because anybody who goes there is going to be laughed at by everyone, because we already did it and made it the best. There’s no [original ‘Blade’ director] Steve Norrington out there.”

Marvel’s “Blade” is currently on the release calendar for Nov. 7, 2025.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next