Aaron Pierre departs Marvel’s Blade in latest shakeup

Last Updated on March 19, 2024

Marvel’s Blade has been dulled yet again, as star Aaron Pierre has exited the project, marking just the most recent snag in the project, which is set to be part of Phase Six in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

As Pierre confirmed to Variety, “Early on, there were conversations…As the project evolved, I’m no longer part of that — attached.” Pierre’s character in Marvel’s Blade was unknown.

There has been a lot of change throughout the development of Marvel’s revisiting of the Blade franchise, most of which relates to talent behind the camera. For starters, Watchmen’s Stacy Osei-Kuffour was hired as writer in 2021 before being replaced by Michael Starrbury (Colin in Black & White) and a handful of others, including True Detective’s Nic Pizzolatto and later Logan’s Michael Green. It’s widely believed that Aaron Pierre’s character would be dropped as subsequent drafts came in. On the directing front, Bassam Tariq (Mogul Mowgli) was on board before leaving the project, opening the spot for White Boy Rick’s Yann Demange.

As for the title role, Mahershala Ali will be playing Blade for Marvel after a campaign to play the character in a movie, landing it at least in part due to his positive relationship with the studio through his work on Luke Cage. Other actors who have been linked to the movie are Mia Goth (possibly as villain Lilith?) and Da 5 Bloods’ Delroy Lindo.

While we don’t know exactly who Pierre would have played in Marvel’s Blade, the actor remains positive about his future prospects, saying, “But there are a number of things that I’m tremendously excited about. Rebel Ridge with Jeremy Saulnier. And The Lion King prequel with Barry Jenkins. All things that are coming out this year that myself and the team are deeply excited about and can’t wait to share with the world — and have people engage with it and experience it in whatever way they feel fit.”

Blade is set for a November 7th, 2025 release, placing it between that summer’s The Fantastic Four and 2026’s next Avengers entry.

Where does Blade rank in your list of most anticipated upcoming Marvel movies?