Marvel Studios has tapped Krypton actor Aaron Pierre for a role in its upcoming Blade reboot, Deadline has revealed.
The British actor, whose other credits include Barry Jenkins’ The Underground Railroad and M. Night Shyamalan’s Old, joins a cast that includes Oscar winner Mahershali Ali as the eponymous vampire hunter along with Delroy Lindo (Da 5 Bloods) in an as-yet-unrevealed role.
As with Lindo, character details for Pierre are being kept tightly under wraps, although Deadline reports that the role “was one of the more highly coveted parts in Hollywood” and that Marvel and director Bassam Tariq had met with dozens of up-and-coming actors prior to Pierre’s casting. The actor was already on Disney’s radar, as he is set to voicea young Mufasa in Barry Jenkins’ The Lion King prequel.
Marvel’s Blade reboot will see Mahershali Ali stepping into the shoes of Wesley Snipes as Eric Brooks, a dhampir whose mother was bitten and killed by a vampire while giving birth to him and who now stalks and hunts the vampire community as the Daywalker. Ali’s Blade made his MCU debut with a voice cameo in the post-credits scene of last year’s Eternals, seemingly setting up Kit Harington’s Dane Whitman for an appearance in the film, although that is yet to be confirmed by Marvel.
