Marvel’s ‘Blade’ pauses production due to writers’ strike

Marvel Studios has paused production once again on the upcoming reboot of Blade due to the ongoing writers’ strike.

The new delay comes after the film – set to star Mahershala Ali – was paused late last year following the departure of director Bassim Tariq, with filming scheduled to start in Atlanta in November.

Production was then pushed back to May, but has now been shelved again due to action by the Writers Guild of America (WGA), according to The Hollywood Reporter

The film’s release date, which was originally scheduled for November 3, 2023, has since been pushed back to September 6, 2024.

There’s no word yet on whether the new delay will push back the release date any further.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the initial pause in production last year came to give the studio time to search for a new director and “coagulate other aspects” of the project.

Tariq’s exit as director was cited as being “due to continued shifts in our production schedule,” according to Marvel. “Bassam is no longer moving forward as director of Blade but will remain an executive producer on the film,” the statement added.

In a separate statement, Tariq said: “It’s been an honour working with the wonderful folks at Marvel. We were able to put together a killer cast and crew. Eager to see where the next director takes the film.”

Filming on the project has been delayed numerous times over the past year, as the script underwent several rewrites. Beau DeMayo, whose previous works include Moon Knight and The Witcher, is the current writer.

Elsewhere during the WGA strike, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers are set to personally pay their staff salaries for the third week of the ongoing action.

The WGA strike took effect on Tuesday (May 2) after weeks of failed negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). Following the confirmation of the strike – Hollywood’s first in 15 years – WGA uploaded a document outlining the differences between proposals made by the writers’ union and offers from the AMPTP that have led to the strike.

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