Mahershala Ali Closes the Door on ‘Blade’- ‘That Project is Not For Me’

Mahershala Ali was announced as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s “Blade” in 2019 during the San Diego Comic-Con. However, years later in 2022, the movie began to fall apart when director Bassam Tariq abruptly exited the production. Now, Ali is teaming up with Tariq for a different movie and breaking his silence on his version of “Blade” never materializing.

Ali and Tariq interviewed with GQ in July 2026 to discuss their upcoming film, “Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother,” which is distributed by Amazon MGM and is scheduled for release in September 2026. During the interview, Ali was asked if he thinks the world is closer to getting the failed “Blade” film first promised in 2019.

He stated, “Not with me. The best way I can answer this question is, when I look at what is for me, is it was either this or that, and I’ll take this. No offense to them. I’ve been doing this professionally for pushing 30 years now, and one thing I’ve learned is that what is for you is for you and what is not is not.”

Ali added, “For whatever reason, that project is not for me.” After that, he raised doubt in Marvel’s interest in the project, stating, “If they wanted to do it, we would’ve done it. So I have to move on, and I have moved on.”

From there, the “Jurassic World: Rebirth” star said that he’s more interested in original stories like the one found in “Your Mother” instead of adding remakes to his resume as an actor.

According to him, “Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother feels very much in alignment with the type of work I want to be known for. I don’t really want to be known for remakes. I’d love to do original work that resonates with people and impacts them in unique ways. 

Ali Says He Couldn’t Have Done His New Movie And ‘Blade’

5

Ali continued his thoughts on “Blade,” but took a bit of a jab at Marvel and the studio’s inaction when it came to making the movie despite all the resources at its disposal. He said, “Again, you had me under contract, they have billions of dollars, if they wanted to do the movie, we would’ve done the movie. So we’re not doing the movie.”

He then reflected on the fact that his new movie exists because “Blade” fell apart. Ali explained, “When I look at this and ‘Blade,’ I couldn’t have done both, and the reason this even exists is because that project fell apart and Bassam had the time, space, energy, and focus to go and write this and then re-approach me.”

Additionally, Ali stated that he was able to use some of his training for “Blade” while filming “Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother.” The actor explained, “In that way, I feel creatively redeemed on some level, just in my own journey between me, myself, and I. But I feel ready to move on from the ‘Blade’ questions.”

He added, “Those questions are for them. They didn’t want to do it, so they should answer that question.”

Marvel’s Kevin Feige Has Addressed The Failed Movie

5

Following the announcement that Ali would become the MCU’s Blade, it was announced in 2021 that Tariq would direct. However, he dropped out of the project the following September. Then, between his exit and 2024, multiple other creatives were attached to the project before the movie disappeared from Marvel’s release calendar in 2025.

Most recently, in July 2026, Kevin Feige, the President and Chief Creative Officer for Marvel, addressed the situation while appearing on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast. He said about the movie, “I am feeling like a gigantic loser and failure that we didn’t get off the ground with Mahershala.”

Ali’s ‘Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother’ Will Have A Limited Theatrical Release

5

According to Deadline, “Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother” will open in New York and Los Angeles theaters on September 25 before expanding on October 2 and October 9. In the movie, which Tariq wrote, directed, and produced, Ali stars as a religious hitman who struggles to find balance between his faith, work, and being a newly single father after his wife’s death.

Ali discussed doing stunt work for the movie, saying, “It really felt like my first action film. ‘Jurassic World Rebirth’ is more of an adventure thing, and, in other films I’ve been in that have action sequences, I’ve died as the action starts, like ‘Predators’ and ‘Hunger Games.’

He continued, “So I’ve been wanting to do a grounded action piece for years. As a former athlete, I’ve dreamed of doing my own stunts. I was very excited to do stunts in ‘Blade’ and trained for a long time for that, so it was a huge relief to get to put that work to use.”

The 2 Time Oscar Winner Has Several Projects In The Works

5

Ali will return for the upcoming “Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse,” where he’s voiced Aaron Davis since the 2018 film. The new movie is expected to be released in 2027. Additionally, according to Deadline, he will appear in an upcoming limited Hulu series, “The Plot,” in which he plays a struggling author who steals another writer’s story idea and is then threatened with exposure.

Currently, “The Plot” does not have a release date.