For two movies that starred Nicolas Cage as a motorcycle stunt rider that made a pact with the devil to sell his soul and ended up as a superhero with his skull on fire, the previous big screen outings for Ghost Rider were unforgivably dull. The internet’s most meme-friendly actor did get to indulge in his signature brand of manic scenery-chewing, but besides some classic Cage Rage there’s almost nothing else to recommend about either the first installment or sequel Spirit of Vengeance.
Elsewhere, the Robbie Reyes version of the character appeared in the fourth season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and was set for his own spinoff show on Hulu before it was abruptly canceled, leaving many fans to wonder if Marvel had much interest in Ghost Rider at all, having originally gotten the rights back in 2013 and then let the fan favorite sit on a shelf gathering dust.
However, the rumor mill has kicked into overdrive recently with the news that not only is Ghost Rider set to be rebooted as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but Johnny Blaze could be the role that finally convinces Keanu Reeves to board the world’s biggest franchise, after Kevin Feige admitted that the studio talks with the beloved actor about pretty much every movie they make.
We recently heard that negotiations had moved to an advanced stage and now our sources – the same ones that told us that She-Hulk and Ms. Marvel shows were in the works for Disney Plus before either was announced – say that they want to team the Spirit of Vengeance up with the freshly-introduced Deadpool. According to our intel, with the Merc set to jump freely across the MCU, the studio see money in having him cross paths with a leather-clad bounty hunter employed by the devil himself. How exactly he’d factor into the movie remains unclear, but we’re told that the plan is definitely for him to appear in some capacity – likely in an extended cameo.
Sparks would certainly fly if Marvel had Keanu Reeves and Ryan Reynolds sparring against each other in a comic book blockbuster, and while plans can always change as the Ghost Rider film continues to develop, given the nature of Deadpool and how easy it would be to slot him in just about anywhere, dropping him into the project would certainly make sense. Even if it’d be a bit surprising to see him show up at first.
