The production of Marvel Studios’ Blade, starring Mahershala Ali, is allegedly nearing completion. Ali has been a supporter of the idea since its inception, going seeking a meeting with Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige to get the project up and running. Marvel’s Blade was officially revealed at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con. The film has subsequently been delayed owing to behind-the-scenes complications, including the departure of original director Bassam Tariq, but Blade appears to be nearing completion.

According to a fresh production list released by the Cinema & Television Industry Association, Blade will begin production on May 1. Blade’s MCU time period has long been believed to be the 1920s, which might be confirmed sooner rather than later, with filming expected to begin in around two months. The new filming update for Blade is incredibly promising, since it reveals that the Marvel picture is now back on track after a series of difficulties.

While there have been several theories about Blade’s lengthy production at Marvel Studios, the picture has undergone some well recognized modifications. Marvel made the formal announcement of Blade at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con. Tariq was confirmed as the movie’s director in the summer of 2021, but the filmmaker abruptly abandoned the project in September. Although the MCU’s Blade casting crew has encountered outstanding performers, the movie looks to have had a hard time deciding out exactly what tale it intended to portray. Tariq’s departure was ascribed to “continuous shifts in the production schedule” at the time of his departure.

These changes finally led to Blade abandoning its initial November 3, 2023 release date in favor of a September 5, 2024 theatrical premiere. After Tariq’s resignation, Marvel hired Yann Demange (Lovecraft Country) to direct the vampire hunter flick. Blade thus left the film’s “on hold” status behind and reentered development with the goal of completing Blade’s MCU entrance, a major set piece in Marvel’s supernatural sector, in time for its big screen premiere next year. But, according to a variety of speculations, Blade’s behind-the-scenes problems extend beyond the stated director change.

According to reports, the initial script for Blade was extremely frustrating for lead Ali. Last September, industry source Jeff Sneider stated that the  “BLADE script is roughly 90 pages and features exactly TWO (lackluster) action sequences, Mahershala said to be very frustrated with the process.” Given such a tumultuous production process, the word that Blade is set to begin filming shortly is significant, since it indicates that Marvel is now satisfied with the status of the project. With the backstage difficulties settled, Marvel can now work on distinguishing Mahershala Ali’s Blade from Wesley Snipes’.