EXCLUSIVE: After a thorough search that involved months of meeting a slew of talent, Marvel’s new
Blade movie has found its director. While a deal is not yet done, sources tell Deadline that
Bassam Tariq, best known for directing the Riz Ahmed film
Mogul Mowgli, is in talks to helm the the new adaptation of the popular comic with
Mahershala Ali set to play the iconic vampire hunter. Stacy Osei-Kuffour is on board to pen the script with Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige producing.
Marvel had no comment.
Feige, Ali and studio execs have been meeting with dozen of candidates going all the way back to the fall, at one point considering writer-director options before ultimately separating the two and tapping Osei-Kuffour to pen the script. Since her hiring, Marvel shortened its list of possible choices and started another round meetings that started in March and went all the way through June. Those that made the final cut met and delivered their final presentations over that time and in the end it was Tariq vision that ultimately won all parties over.