“Blade” Movie Impacted by Screenwriters’ Strike: Marvel Cuts Production
Marvel Studios has announced that its upcoming movie “Blade” starring Mahershala Ali has been halted due to the Writers Guild of America strike. This makes it the first major studio film to be impacted by the strike. The movie’s pre-production work had previously been delayed, and plans to begin shooting in Atlanta next month are now on hold.
The “Blade” screenplay team had recently been joined by Nic Pizzolatto, the creator of the hit television series “True Detective,” to revamp the script written by Michael Starrbury. This pause, which will last until the strike is over, is the second time production on the movie has been halted. In the fall of 2022, director Bassam Tariq had left the project a few weeks prior to the start of filming, forcing production to come to a stop.
Marvel Studios has found a new director, Yann Demange, to replace Tariq on the project. However, due to the extensive changes in the movie’s production, the project took longer to get back on track, and the shooting process was further delayed.
Another Marvel Studios production affected by the strike is the series “Daredevil: Born Again,” which is being filmed in New York and was supposed to continue for about a year. Filming for the series has been paused for an unknown period of time.
On the other hand, filming for some other Marvel Studios productions continues, including “Captain America: New World Order,” “Agatha: Coven of Chaos,” and “Wonder Man.” “Deadpool 3” is also expected to begin filming in London later this month, while “Thunderbolts” will start filming in Atlanta in June.
Although the strike only covers the screenwriting process, with many productions having screenwriters continue to work while on set, Marvel Studios has paused the production of some of its projects to support the WGA strike. Marvel Studios also usually has a screenwriter on set to intervene and make script changes whenever necessary.
It remains to be seen how long the strike will last and how many other productions will be impacted by it. For now, fans of “Blade” and other Marvel Studios productions affected by the strike will have to wait for further updates.
