Marvel’s Blade Loses Its Director Again, Yann Demange Exits the Film
Fans of the MCU universe have to wait a little longer for the upcoming film Blade, as it lost its second director. As per the reports, Yann Demange exited the project, and a source said that his exit was “entirely amicable,” but the reason behind his departure is currently unknown.
Demange’s entry into the director seat of Blade, who is famous for directing the film ‘71 and the series Dead Set and Top Boy, was announced in November 2022. At that time, the release date was set for September 6, 2024, and production was already delayed due to the exit of the first director, in which the film’s production was decided to start in Atlanta in 2023.
The film faced a delay again due to SAG-AFTRA strikes, postponing the release date to February 14, 2025, and again moving to November 7, 2025.
The first director attached to the film was Bassam Tariq, and he left the production in 2022 due to a conflict in the schedules. After his exit, he shared a post on Instagram stating, “I’m filled with love and gratitude towards the folks at Marvel as well as the incredible crew and cast we assembled,” and continued, “I’m eager to support and see how the next director builds on the foundation we’ve set.”
He also informed his fans, “I’ll now be joining the project as an EP as I move on to what’s next.”
The reboot was announced in 2019 during Mahershala Ali’s surprise appearance at San Diego Comic-Con. Kevin Feige, Marvel Studios President, confirmed at that time that Ali would play the lead role.
The film has faced several problems since its development started. The film first hired Stacy Osei-Kuffour, who wrote the Watchmen episodes, as a scriptwriter. After that, the project has undergone several writers, including Michael Green, Michael Starrbury, and Nic Pizzolatto. Currently, Beau DeMayo, who exited Marvel’s X-Men 97, is handling the script for Blade Reboot.
The Marvel Comics character Blade was created by Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan. The character first appeared in the comic book The Tomb of Dracula #10, published in July 1973. He is a vampire hunter who takes revenge for killing his mother, as she was killed by a vampire while giving birth to him.
The first movie in the Blade trilogy was released in 1998, and the sequels Blade II and Blade: Trinity were released in 2002 and 2004, respectively. Wesley Snipes played the titular character in the original trilogy.