“I Didn’t Think That Marvel Was Into It”

Wesley Snipes recalls how the idea of reprising his superhero role as Blade in Deadpool and Wolverine came about.

Snipes opened up about a call he got from Ryan Reynolds and how he questioned if it would ever happen.

“It started with a text from Ryan Reynolds,” Snipes told Entertainment Weekly.

Snipes joked that when he saw the text and he said, “I hate this guy,” telling Reynolds directly, “You know, this is a joke. We’ve been playing this for like two decades. We’ve actually liked each other the whole time.”

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The actor said Reynolds told him he had an idea, but Snipes was hesitant at first, questioning how he would execute it.

“It’s very unlikely,” Snipes said. “And I said, ‘Well, if you can make it happen. Sure. I’ll come and do it.’”

He continued, “I did not think it was possible. I didn’t think he would be able to pull it off. I didn’t think that Marvel was into it. Disney was into it. And also because they had Mahershala, you know, cast for the next upcoming version of it. So, it didn’t make sense to me.”

Snipes first played the superhero in 1998’s Blade, directed by Stephen Norrington. The actor would reprise the role in 2002’s Blade II and 2004’s Blade: Trinity.

In 2019, Marvel confirmed they were working on a Blade reboot starring Ali. The project has been plagued by delays, including the loss of director Bassam Tariq and the writers’ strike.

Blade is now set to be directed by Yann Demange and scheduled for release on November 7, 2025.