Practically everyone who loves cinema seems to be excited about the upcoming Blade reboot. The casting of two-time Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali in the titular role was a grand slam for Marvel and now, it sounds like the project might take on another recent Oscar recipient.
Our sources have told us that acclaimed director Spike Lee is reportedly being eyed to helm the highly-anticipated remake. Nothing is imminent as of yet, but the studio has heard their fans’ pleas and are now intent on tapping a black filmmaker to spearhead this feature. Other names being considered are apparently Lee Daniels, Steve McQueen and Nia DaCosta. Jordan Peele, meanwhile, has seemingly already removed his name from consideration, though it’s possible he could change his mind if offered the job.
While all of those options are certainly intriguing, it’s fair to say that none have the expansive filmography of Lee. The director has long been an advocate for black culture, dating all the way back to his onscreen debut in 1986. She’s Gotta Have It launched his career, which has included plenty of Oscar nominations and plenty more snubs. He finally walked away with the coveted award in 2019 for Best Adapted Screenplay for his latest flick BlacKkKlansman.
Frankly, adding Lee to a production that already boasts Ali in the main role sounds like a dream come true. This film has the potential to put up box office numbers similar to Black Panther, especially considering all of the money that the original trilogy made. Then again, studios have recently seen some reboots fail to meet lofty expectations. Just ask the executives at Sony how they feel about Men in Black: International.
The best way to ensure a solid final product is to recruit talented and proven individuals to run the operation. Few in the industry are as gifted and refined as Spike Lee, so hopefully Marvel can lock him or one of the other aforementioned directors down before long so that they can finally start filming the Blade reimagining that everyone’s dying to see.
