Almost two and a half years after Mahershala Ali was called onto the stage to end the franchise’s San Diego Comic-Con panel with a bang to deliver an unexpected surprise, the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Blade reboot has finally hired its first cast member outside of the leading man, with Delroy Lindo in final talks to board the project.
The veteran actor has been working solidly for almost 50 years, showing up in a number of acclaimed film and television projects during that time, but he’s in the midst of a well-deserved resurgence following a recent pair of acclaimed performances in Netflix duo Da 5 Bloods and The Harder They Fall.
As you can see from the reactions below, fans are overjoyed at the news Lindo will be playing a major role in a mega budget comic book adaptation, with many crossing their fingers that he’ll eventually be revealed as Blade’s trusted confidant and ally Whistler.
The report on Lindo’s casting came packing the caveat that production on Blade is tentatively set to begin next summer, so we should be seeing the all-new Daywalker before the end of 2023. With two stars, a director and a writer now officially confirmed, let’s hope this is just the first of many announcements to come in rapid succession.