Blade (1998)
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''Blade'' is a 1998 American
superhero film Superhero film/movie is a film genre categorized by the presence of superhero characters, individuals with extraordinary abilities who are dedicated to fighting crime, saving the world, or helping the innocent. It is sometimes considered a sub ...
directed by
Stephen Norrington Stephen Norrington (born 1964) is an English special effects artist and retired film director known for his work in the horror and action genres. Beginning his career as a sculptor and makeup artist, he worked under Dick Smith (make-up artist), ...
and written by
David S. Goyer David Samuel Goyer (born December 22, 1965) is an American filmmaker, novelist, and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays and stories for several superhero films, including '' Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998), t ...
. Based on the
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...
character
Blade A blade is the Sharpness (cutting), sharp, cutting portion of a tool, weapon, or machine, specifically designed to puncture, chop, slice, or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they a ...
, it is the first installment of the ''Blade'' franchise. The film stars
Wesley Snipes Wesley Trent Snipes (born July 31, 1962) is an American actor and martial artist. In a film career spanning more than thirty years, Snipes has appeared in a variety of genres, such as numerous thrillers, dramatic feature films, and comedies, th ...
as the titular character with
Stephen Dorff Stephen Hartley Dorff Jr. (born July 29, 1973) is an American actor. Starting his film career as a child appearing in the Cult following, cult horror (genre), horror film ''The Gate (1987 film), The Gate'' (1987), Dorff first rose to prominence ...
,
Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (June 22, 1936 – September 28, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was a pioneering figure in the outlaw country movement of the 1970s, moving away from the polished Nashville sound and toward a m ...
and
N'Bushe Wright N'Bushe Wright ( ; born September 7, 1969) is an American actress and dancer. She attended and trained as a dancer at the Alvin Ailey Dance Center and the Martha Graham School of Dance. She is known mainly for her role as Dr. Karen Jenson in th ...
in supporting roles. Blade is a
Dhampir In Balkan folklore, a dhampir () is a mythical creature that is the result of a union between a vampire and a human. This union was usually between male vampires and female humans, with stories of female vampires mating with male humans being rar ...
, a human with vampire strengths but not their weaknesses, who fights against vampires. ''Blade'' was released in the United States on August 21, 1998, and was a commercial success, grossing $70 million at the U.S. box office, and $131.2 million worldwide. Despite mixed reviews from film critics, the film received a positive reception from audiences and has since garnered a
cult following A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...
. It is also hailed as one of Snipes's signature roles. ''Blade'' was noted as a dark superhero film for its time, as well as being Marvel's first successful film. It was followed by two sequels, ''
Blade II ''Blade II'' is a 2002 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Blade, directed by Guillermo del Toro and written by David S. Goyer. The sequel to ''Blade'' (1998), it is the second installment in the ''Blade'' franchise. T ...
'' (2002) and '' Blade: Trinity'' (2004), both written by Goyer, who also directed the latter. Snipes reprised his role as Blade in the 2024 film ''
Deadpool & Wolverine ''Deadpool & Wolverine'' is a 2024 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Deadpool and Wolverine (character), Wolverine. Produced by Marvel Studios, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment, and distributed ...
''.


Plot

In 1967, a pregnant woman is attacked by a vampire, causing her to go into
premature labor Preterm birth, also known as premature birth, is the Childbirth, birth of a baby at fewer than 37 weeks Gestational age (obstetrics), gestational age, as opposed to full-term delivery at approximately 40 weeks. Extreme preterm is less than 28 ...
. Doctors are able to save her baby, but the woman dies. Thirty years later, the child has become the vampire hunter
Blade A blade is the Sharpness (cutting), sharp, cutting portion of a tool, weapon, or machine, specifically designed to puncture, chop, slice, or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they a ...
, who is known as the daywalker, a human-vampire hybrid that possesses the supernatural abilities of the vampires without any of their weaknesses, except for the requirement to consume human blood. Blade raids a rave club in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
owned by the vampire
Deacon Frost Deacon Frost is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He appears in ''The Tomb of Dracula'', and is an enemy of Blade. In the comics, Deacon Frost was depicted as a tall, white-haired, late middle-age ...
. Police take one of the vampires to the hospital, where he kills Dr. Curtis Webb and feeds on
hematologist Hematology ( spelled haematology in British English) is the branch of medicine concerned with the study of the cause, prognosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases related to blood. It involves treating diseases that affect the production ...
Karen Jenson, and escapes. Blade takes Karen to a safe house where she is treated by his old friend
Abraham Whistler Abraham Whistler is a fictional character appearing in the Blade (franchise), ''Blade'' film and Blade (TV series), television series. Developing the 1998 film ''Blade (1998 film), Blade'', screenwriter David S. Goyer created the character, and n ...
. Whistler explains that he and Blade have been waging a secret war against vampires using weapons based on their elemental weaknesses, such as sunlight, silver, and garlic. As Karen is now "marked" by the bite of a vampire, both he and Blade tell her to leave the city. At a meeting of the council of pure-blood vampire elders, Frost, the leader of a faction of younger vampires, is rebuked for trying to incite war between vampires and humans. As Frost and his kind are not natural-born vampires, they are considered socially inferior. Meanwhile, returning to her apartment, Karen is attacked by police officer Krieger, who is a
familiar In European folklore of the medieval and early modern periods, familiars (strictly familiar spirits, as "familiar" also meant just "close friend" or companion, and may be seen in the scientific name for dog, ''Canis familiaris'') were believed ...
, a human loyal to vampires. Blade subdues Krieger and uses information from him to locate an archive that contains pages from the "vampire bible". Krieger informs Frost of what happened, and Frost kills Krieger. Frost also has one of the elders executed and strips the others of their authority, in response to the earlier disrespect shown to him at the council of vampires. Meanwhile, Blade comes upon Pearl, a morbidly obese vampire, and tortures him with a UV light into revealing that Frost wants to command a ritual where he would use 12 pure-blood vampires to awaken the "blood god" La Magra, and Blade's blood is the key. Later, at the hideout, Blade injects himself with a special serum that suppresses his urge to drink blood. However, the serum is beginning to lose its effectiveness due to overuse. While experimenting with the anticoagulant
EDTA Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), also called EDTA acid, is an aminopolycarboxylic acid with the formula . This white, slightly water-soluble solid is widely used to bind to iron (Fe2+/Fe3+) and calcium ions (Ca2+), forming water-solubl ...
as a possible replacement, Karen discovers that it explodes when combined with vampire blood. She manages to synthesize a vaccine that can cure the infected but learns that it will not work on Blade. Karen is confident that she can cure Blade's bloodthirst but it would take her years of treating it. After Blade rejects Frost's offer for a truce, Frost and his men attack the hideout where they infect Whistler and abduct Karen. When Blade returns, he helps Whistler commit suicide. When Blade attempts to rescue Karen from Frost's penthouse, he is shocked to find his still-alive mother, who reveals that she came back the night she was attacked and was brought in by Frost, who appears and reveals himself as the vampire who bit her. Blade is then subdued and taken to the Temple of Eternal Night, where Frost plans to perform the summoning ritual for La Magra. Karen is thrown into a pit to be devoured by Webb, who has transformed into a decomposing
zombie A zombie (Haitian French: ; ; Kikongo: ''zumbi'') is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. In modern popular culture, zombies appear in horror genre works. The term comes from Haitian folkl ...
-like creature. Karen injures Webb and escapes. Blade is drained of his blood, but Karen allows him to drink from her, enabling him to recover. Frost completes the ritual and obtains the powers of La Magra. Blade confronts Frost after killing all of his minions, including his mother, but initially finds him too powerful to defeat. Blade injects Frost with all of the syringes of EDTA, and the overdose causes his body to inflate and explode, finally killing him. Karen offers to help Blade cure himself; instead, he asks her to create an improved version of the serum so he can continue his crusade against vampires. In a brief
epilogue An epilogue or epilog (from Greek ἐπίλογος ''epílogos'', "conclusion" from ἐπί ''epi'', "in addition" and λόγος ''logos'', "word") is a piece of writing at the end of a work of literature, usually used to bring closure to the ...
, Blade confronts a vampire in
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
.


Cast

*
Wesley Snipes Wesley Trent Snipes (born July 31, 1962) is an American actor and martial artist. In a film career spanning more than thirty years, Snipes has appeared in a variety of genres, such as numerous thrillers, dramatic feature films, and comedies, th ...
as Eric Brooks / Blade: A half-vampire "daywalker" (a
Dhampir In Balkan folklore, a dhampir () is a mythical creature that is the result of a union between a vampire and a human. This union was usually between male vampires and female humans, with stories of female vampires mating with male humans being rar ...
) who hunts vampires. Blade is highly skilled in martial arts and always equips himself with vampire-killing weapons. *
Stephen Dorff Stephen Hartley Dorff Jr. (born July 29, 1973) is an American actor. Starting his film career as a child appearing in the Cult following, cult horror (genre), horror film ''The Gate (1987 film), The Gate'' (1987), Dorff first rose to prominence ...
as
Deacon Frost Deacon Frost is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He appears in ''The Tomb of Dracula'', and is an enemy of Blade. In the comics, Deacon Frost was depicted as a tall, white-haired, late middle-age ...
: An upstart vampire with great ambitions and influence. He emerges as Blade's primary enemy and also wants to conquer the human race. *
Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (June 22, 1936 – September 28, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was a pioneering figure in the outlaw country movement of the 1970s, moving away from the polished Nashville sound and toward a m ...
as
Abraham Whistler Abraham Whistler is a fictional character appearing in the Blade (franchise), ''Blade'' film and Blade (TV series), television series. Developing the 1998 film ''Blade (1998 film), Blade'', screenwriter David S. Goyer created the character, and n ...
: Blade's mentor, father figure and weaponsmith *
N'Bushe Wright N'Bushe Wright ( ; born September 7, 1969) is an American actress and dancer. She attended and trained as a dancer at the Alvin Ailey Dance Center and the Martha Graham School of Dance. She is known mainly for her role as Dr. Karen Jenson in th ...
as Dr. Karen Jenson: A hematologist who is bitten by a vampire. She stays with Blade to remain safe while she finds a cure for herself and eventually becomes his partner in fighting Deacon Frost's party. *
Donal Logue Donal Francis Logue (born February 27, 1966) is a Canadian-American film and television actor. He played the starring role of Sean Finnerty on the sitcom '' Grounded for Life'' (2001–2005), and Detective Harvey Bullock on the DC Comics adapta ...
as Quinn: A cocky minion of Frost's, capable of surviving wounds that kill lesser vampires. *
Udo Kier Udo Kierspe (born 14 October 1944), known professionally as Udo Kier, is a German actor. Known primarily as a character actor, he has appeared in more than 220 films in both leading and supporting roles throughout Europe and the Americas. He has ...
as Gitano Dragonetti: A vampire elder. *
Arly Jover Araceli "Arly" Jover is a Spanish actress. She is best known for her role as the villainous vampire Mercury in the 1998 superhero film ''Blade''. Life and career Araceli Jover was born in Melilla, Spain. After living there for five years, her f ...
as "Mercury": A fleet-footed vampire and one of Frost's multiple lovers. *
Traci Lords Traci Elizabeth Lords (born Nora Louise Kuzma; May 7, 1968) is an American actress and singer. As a 15-year-old high-school dropout, she used Identity document forgery, fake identity documents to enter the sex industry, where she began appearin ...
as Racquel: A seductive vampire who leads a man to the blood rave. * Kevin Patrick Walls as Officer Krieger: A "familiar", or human servant, of Frost's. *
Tim Guinee Timothy S. Guinee (born November 18, 1962) is an American stage, television, and feature-film actor. Primarily known for his roles as Tomin in the television series ''Stargate SG-1'' (1997–2007) and railroad entrepreneur Collis Huntington in ...
as Dr. Curtis Webb: Karen's ex-boyfriend, who is killed by Quinn and later becomes a zombie-like creature, instead of a vampire (like most people bitten by a vampire would). *
Sanaa Lathan Sanaa McCoy Lathan (; born September 19, 1971) is an American actress. She is the daughter of actress Eleanor McCoy and film director Stan Lathan. Her career began after she appeared in the shows ''In the House'', '' Family Matters'', ''NYPD Bl ...
as Vanessa Brooks: Blade's mother, who has become a vampire. * Eric Edwards as Pearl: a morbidly obese vampire.


Production


Background

The character
Blade A blade is the Sharpness (cutting), sharp, cutting portion of a tool, weapon, or machine, specifically designed to puncture, chop, slice, or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they a ...
was created in 1973 for Marvel Comics by the writer
Marv Wolfman Marvin Arthur Wolfman (born May 13, 1946) is an American comic book and novelization writer. He worked on Marvel Comics's ''The Tomb of Dracula'', for which he and artist Gene Colan created the vampire-slayer Blade (character), Blade, and DC Comi ...
and artist
Gene Colan Eugene Jules Colan (; September 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)Eugene Colan
at the Social Security Death Index via ...
as a supporting character in the 1970s comic ''
The Tomb of Dracula ''The Tomb of Dracula'' is an American horror comic book series published by Marvel Comics from April 1972 to August 1979. The 70-issue series featured a group of vampire hunters who fought Count Dracula and other supernatural menaces. On rare ...
''. The comic Blade used
teakwood Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters (panic ...
knives and was much more the everyman in his behavior and attitude. Though courageous and brave, he displayed flaws as well, such as an inability to get along with certain other supporting cast members and a hatred of vampires that bordered on fanaticism. The character was not originally a "daywalker" but a human being immune to being turned into a vampire. Lacking the superhuman speed and strength of his undead quarry, he relied solely on his wits and skill until he was bitten by the character
Morbius Morbius (born Michael Morbius, also known as Morgan Michaels, Morbius the Living Vampire and Nikos Michaels) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Roy Thomas and originally designed by pen ...
as seen in ''Peter Parker: Spider-Man'' #8, first published in August 1999. The film portrayal of Blade was updated for a 1990s audience and the comics character was subsequently modified to match. Goyer replaced the daggers Blade used in the comics with a sword and gave him a more
samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...
-like aesthetic. The film's version of Deacon Frost also differs greatly from his comic counterpart. He was older with white hair and literally a church deacon, but the film retains Frost's upstart ambitions.


Development

When
New World Pictures New World Pictures (also known as New World Entertainment, New World Communications Group, Inc., and New World International) was an American independent production, distribution, and (in its final years as an autonomous entity) multimedia com ...
bought the rights to
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...
, they were set to make a
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
-set western starring
Richard Roundtree Richard Arnold Roundtree (July 9, 1942 – October 24, 2023) was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of private detective John Shaft in the 1971 film '' Shaft'' and four of its sequels, '' Shaft's Big Score!'' (1972), '' Shaft ...
as the vampire hunter.
Marvel Studios Marvel Studios, LLC, formerly known as Marvel Films, is an American film and television production company. Marvel Studios is the creator of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), a media franchise and shared universe of films and television ser ...
then started to develop the film in early 1992, when rapper
LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, alongside fellow new school hip ho ...
was interested in playing the lead role. ''Blade'' was eventually set up at
New Line Cinema New Line Productions, Inc., Trade name, doing business as New Line Cinema, is an American film production, film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, a division of the Major film studios, ...
, with
David S. Goyer David Samuel Goyer (born December 22, 1965) is an American filmmaker, novelist, and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays and stories for several superhero films, including '' Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998), t ...
writing the script. When Goyer heard a film was in development he went in to pitch with director
Ernest Dickerson Ernest Roscoe Dickerson (born June 25, 1951) is an American director, cinematographer, and screenwriter of film, television, and music videos. As a cinematographer, Dickerson is known for his frequent collaborations with Spike Lee ever since they ...
.
David Fincher David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. Often described as one of the preeminent directors of his generation, David Fincher filmography, his films, of which most are psychological thrillers, have collectiv ...
was also attached to the project and even worked on the script with Goyer. New Line Cinema originally wanted to do ''Blade'' as "something that was almost a spoof" before the writer convinced them otherwise. At one point, the studio even asked if Blade could be white. Goyer wanted to take the character seriously, and ground them in a sense of reality with vampirism as a biological disease. He even pitched a trilogy of movies "almost
Wagnerian Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most ...
in scope". He also wanted to demystify the vampires and treat them as serious villains with a greater sense of realism instead of the doomed romantic characters shown in Anne Rice's ''Interview with the Vampire''. Goyer's early drafts predated but took a similar post-modern approach as the films ''
From Dusk till Dawn ''From Dusk till Dawn'' is a 1996 American action horror film directed by Robert Rodriguez and written by Quentin Tarantino from a concept and story by Robert Kurtzman. Starring Harvey Keitel, George Clooney, Tarantino, Ernest Liu, and Juliet ...
'' and '' Vampire in Brooklyn''. After failing to get a
Black Panther A black panther is the Melanism, melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical Rosette (zoology), rosettes are al ...
film into production, in 1996,
Wesley Snipes Wesley Trent Snipes (born July 31, 1962) is an American actor and martial artist. In a film career spanning more than thirty years, Snipes has appeared in a variety of genres, such as numerous thrillers, dramatic feature films, and comedies, th ...
signed on to star as
Blade A blade is the Sharpness (cutting), sharp, cutting portion of a tool, weapon, or machine, specifically designed to puncture, chop, slice, or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they a ...
. Snipes also produced through his company Amen Ra Films, and worked with the writers to invest the story with elements of classic tragedy - ”like ''
Lear Lear or Leir may refer to: Acronyms * Liga de Escritores y Artistas Revolucionarios, a Mexican association of revolutionary artists and writers * Low Energy Ion Ring, an ion pre-accelerator of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN ** Low Energy Antipr ...
, like ''
Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
"- to heighten the characters' emotional drama.


Casting

When Goyer first pitched the idea of doing a ''Blade'' film,
Michael De Luca Michael De Luca (born August 13, 1965) is an American film studio executive, film producer and screenwriter. He is also the former president of production at both New Line Cinema and DreamWorks. De Luca has been nominated for three Academy Aw ...
, head of New Line Cinema, suggested
Denzel Washington Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. (born December 28, 1954) is an American actor, producer, and director. Known for his dramatic roles Denzel Washington on screen and stage, on stage and screen, Washington has received List of awards and nominations ...
, Wesley Snipes, and
Laurence Fishburne Laurence John Fishburne III (born July 30, 1961) is an American actor. Throughout his career, he has gained recognition for his roles on stage and screen as militant and authoritative characters. List of awards and nominations received by Laur ...
, but to Goyer, Snipes was always the perfect choice for
Blade A blade is the Sharpness (cutting), sharp, cutting portion of a tool, weapon, or machine, specifically designed to puncture, chop, slice, or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they a ...
. The finalized script was sent to Snipes and no other actor was seriously considered.
Patrick McGoohan Patrick Joseph McGoohan (; March 19, 1928 – January 13, 2009) was an Irish-American actor of film, television, and theatre. Born in New York City to Irish parents, he was raised in Ireland and England. He began his career in England during t ...
was the first choice to play Whistler, as Stephen Norrington was a fan of ''
The Prisoner ''The Prisoner'' is a British television series created by Patrick McGoohan. McGoohan portrays Number Six (The Prisoner), Number Six, an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a The Village (The Prisoner), mysteri ...
'' (1967).
Jon Voight Jonathan Vincent Voight (; born December 29, 1938) is an American actor. Throughout his career, he has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and four Golden Globe Awards as well as nominations ...
was also considered for the role.


Filming

''Blade'' was produced on a budget of $45 million and
principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
commenced on February 5, 1997, in large part done in Los Angeles, with some scenes being shot in
Death Valley Death Valley is a desert valley in Eastern California, in the northern Mojave Desert, bordering the Great Basin Desert. It is thought to be the Highest temperature recorded on Earth, hottest place on Earth during summer. Death Valley's Badwat ...
. All sets were constructed, and all on-set filming occurred, in what was formerly the Redken Shampoo factory in Canoga Park. The effects for the film were done by Flat Earth Productions.


Post-production

The first cut of the film was 140 minutes long. It had a disastrous test screening with audiences. Heavy edits and re-shoots were implemented which delayed the release date for more than half a year. The most significant change was the addition of the final sword fight between Blade and Deacon Frost, which did not exist in the original cut. In the original ending, Frost turned into La Magra and became a large swirling mass of blood instead of keeping his form. This was scrapped because the filmmakers could not get the special effects to look right. It can be seen as a special feature on the DVD.
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...
originally had a cameo that was ultimately cut from the film. He played one of the cops that came into the blood club during the aftermath and discover Quinn's body on fire. The scene where Karen and Deacon are talking about the cure for vampirism initially ran slightly longer and answered the question of how the vampires would feed if everybody was turned into a vampire. They would keep some humans alive in giant blood bags to harvest them. The bags can still be seen in a doorway during the scene, and later played an integral part of the plot in '' Blade: Trinity''. Marvel was not going to give
Marv Wolfman Marvin Arthur Wolfman (born May 13, 1946) is an American comic book and novelization writer. He worked on Marvel Comics's ''The Tomb of Dracula'', for which he and artist Gene Colan created the vampire-slayer Blade (character), Blade, and DC Comi ...
and
Gene Colan Eugene Jules Colan (; September 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)Eugene Colan
at the Social Security Death Index via ...
credit for the characters they had created, but Goyer insisted. He asked New Line and they accepted, but representatives of Marv Wolfman said only he should get credit, and not Gene Colan. Goyer insisted that both be credited.


Music

A soundtrack containing hip hop music was released on August 25, 1998, by
TVT Records TVT Records, originally Tee-Vee Toons, was an American record label founded by Steve Gottlieb in 1984. Initially created to release the '' Television's Greatest Hits'' series of classic TV theme tune compilations, the label would expand into ra ...
and
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...
. It peaked at #36 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and #28 on the
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip-hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Luminate. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated January 30, ...
. The British techno band
The Prodigy The Prodigy are an English electronic music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboardist, and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured Rapping, MC and vocalist Maxim (musician), Maxim, dancer and occasi ...
was approached to do the soundtrack and score to the film but had to turn down the offer due to other commitments.


Release


Theatrical

''Blade'' premiered on August 19, 1998 at New York's Sony Theaters Lincoln Square, with another screening at Los Angeles'
Grauman's Chinese Theatre Grauman's Chinese Theatre, known as the Chinese colloquially and officially billed as TCL Chinese Theatre for sponsorship reasons, is a movie palace on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, Unite ...
the following day before opening wide on August 21. The film was banned from showing in Malaysia, widely considered to have the most controlling censors in
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
.


Home media

''Blade'' was first released on
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
and
VHS VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s. Ma ...
on December 1, 1998 by
New Line Home Entertainment New Line Home Entertainment (formerly known as New Line Home Video) was the home entertainment distribution arm of the film production studio of the same name, founded in 1990. It was responsible for the distribution of all New Line Cinema the ...
. The film was released on
Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...
on June 19, 2012. The film was released in 4K
Ultra HD Blu-ray Ultra HD Blu-ray (4K Ultra HD, UHD-BD, or 4K Blu-ray) is a digital optical disc data storage format that is an enhanced variant of Blu-ray. Ultra HD Blu-ray supports 4K UHD (3840 × 2160 pixel resolution) video at frame rates up to 60 progre ...
by
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment, Inc. (doing business as Warner Bros. Home Entertainment; formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the American home video distribution ...
on December 1, 2020. The remastered 4K release differs from earlier versions by using a
widescreen Widescreen images are displayed within a set of aspect ratio (image), aspect ratios (relationship of image width to height) used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ...
2.39:1 format.


Lawsuits

Marv Wolfman unsuccessfully sued Marvel and New Line Cinema for $35 million after the release of the film, claiming he was not bound by a
work for hire In copyright law, a work made for hire (work for hire or WFH) is a work whose copyright is initially owned by an entity other than the actual creator as a result of an employment relationship or, in some cases, a commission. It is an exception to t ...
contract when he created the character in 1972. He, along with artist Gene Colan, received a "based on characters created by" credit in this film. Three extras in the blood rave scene sued the studios and effects company Reel Creations Inc. claiming the stage blood caused permanent blemishes to their skin.


Reception


Box office

In North America, ''Blade'' dislodged ''
Saving Private Ryan ''Saving Private Ryan'' is a 1998 American epic war film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat. Set in 1944 in Normandy, France, during World War II, it follows a group of soldiers, led by Captain John Miller ( Tom Hanks) ...
'', which led the previous four weeks in the box office, to finish at number one with $17.1 million across 2,322 screens. The film would top the box office for two weekends until it was overtaken by ''
There's Something About Mary ''There's Something About Mary'' is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by the Farrelly brothers, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ed Decter and John J. Strauss. The film features Cameron Diaz as the title character, while Ben S ...
''. The film also opened in number one in both
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, with $1.5 million (US) in 200 theaters, and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, with $1 million from 132 cinemas. In the
Flemish Region The Flemish Region (, ), usually simply referred to as Flanders ( ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—alongside the Wallonia, Walloon Region and the Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region. ...
of Belgium, the film earned $323,000 from 20 cinemas, and the Netherlands earned the film $246,000 from 44 cinemas. France made $1.9 million in five days from 241 cinemas, but the film was less successful in Hong Kong (with $182,000 from 22 cinemas) and South Africa ($159,000 from 64 cinemas). The United Kingdom was more successful, taking in $5.7 million over 10 days, as was Brazil, making $855,000 in four days from 133 cinemas. ''Blade'' remained atop the North American box office in its second weekend, earning $11.1 million. ''Blade'' finished its box office run with $70 million domestically and $61 million worldwide for a total of $131.2 million. Despite the success of the film, Marvel shared only a flat fee of $25,000.


Critical response

On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, the film has an approval rating of 58% based on 113 reviews, with an average rating of 6/10. The site's critics consensus states: "Though some may find the plot a bit lacking, ''Blade''s action is fierce, plentiful, and appropriately stylish for a comic book adaptation." On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 47 out of 100 based on reviews from 23 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...
gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...
gave the film three stars out of four, writing: "''Blade'' ... is a movie that relishes high visual style. It uses the extreme camera angles, the bizarre costumes and sets, the exaggerated shadows, the confident cutting between long shots and extreme closeups. It slams ahead in pure visceral imagery".
James Berardinelli James Berardinelli (born September 25, 1967) is an American film critic. His reviews are mainly published on his blog ''ReelViews.'' Approved as a critic by the aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, he has published two collections of reviews of movies on ...
gave the film 2½ stars out of 4, writing: "''Blade'' has the capacity to dazzle, but it also will leave many viewers dissatisfied". Berardinelli also wrote: "''Blade'' opens brilliantly, with a series of fast-paced, visually-engaging scenes that display the seedy underbelly of vampire society and introduce the implacable title character in true superhero fashion. For about its first hour, the movie offers violent, visceral, rapid fire entertainment that concentrates as much on developing a distinctive atmosphere as on advancing a minimalist storyline. Unfortunately ..it keeps going and going, eventually wearing out its welcome". Dennis Harvey of ''Variety'' wrote: "Though slick and diverting in some aspects, increasingly silly pic has trouble meshing disparate elements -- horror, superhero fantasy, straight-up action -- into a workable whole". John Krewson of ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
'' was critical of the story and the dialogue, but praised the "creative cinematography and non-stop, decently choreographed gratuitous violence". Critics such as A. Asbjørn Jøn have noted not only the important place of ''Blade'' in the wider vampire genre, but also possible intertextual links between the Whistler character and a character named Whistler in ''A Dozen Black Roses'' (1996) by Nancy A. Collins, as they possess "striking similarities in role, dramatic focus, visual appearance, and sharing the name".


Accolades

The film was nominated for Best Horror Film and Best Make-up at the
Saturn Awards The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films bel ...
.
Stephen Dorff Stephen Hartley Dorff Jr. (born July 29, 1973) is an American actor. Starting his film career as a child appearing in the Cult following, cult horror (genre), horror film ''The Gate (1987 film), The Gate'' (1987), Dorff first rose to prominence ...
won Best Villain at the
MTV Movie Awards The MTV Movie & TV Awards is a film and television awards show previously presented annually on MTV. It began as the MTV Movie Awards in 1992, when its 1992 MTV Movie Awards, first edition was held, and adopted its current name in 2017, beginnin ...
while
Wesley Snipes Wesley Trent Snipes (born July 31, 1962) is an American actor and martial artist. In a film career spanning more than thirty years, Snipes has appeared in a variety of genres, such as numerous thrillers, dramatic feature films, and comedies, th ...
was nominated for Best Fight.


Video game

A video game prequel was published and released by
Activision Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
in 2000 for the
PlayStation is a video gaming brand owned and produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), a division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. Its flagship products consists of a series of home video game consoles produced under the brand; it also consists ...
. The game received mixed reviews. On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
it received a weighted average score 51% based on reviews from 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. A separate game for the
Game Boy Color The (GBC or CGB) is an 8-bit handheld game console developed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on October 21, 1998, and to international markets that November. Compared to the original Game Boy, the Game Boy Color features a color TFT scre ...
was also released.


Sequels

The success of the film led to two sequels, ''Blade II'' in 2002, ''Blade Trinity'' in 2004, as well as a television series.


Legacy

In August 2014, Snipes spoke about his desire to return to the franchise: "I'd be open to it. I think we've got some stones left unturned and there's some latitude left for us to build on and I'd love to get back in the suit again and do some things I've learned how to do now that I didn't know how to do then". During their 2019
San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...
presentation,
Marvel Studios Marvel Studios, LLC, formerly known as Marvel Films, is an American film and television production company. Marvel Studios is the creator of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), a media franchise and shared universe of films and television ser ...
announced a ''Blade'' reboot set in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...
, with
Mahershala Ali Mahershala Ali ( ; born Mahershalalhashbaz Gilmore on February 16, 1974) is an American actor. He has received multiple accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Fi ...
starring as Blade. Some fans of Snipes were disappointed, but Snipes expressed his support for Ali saying he would "do great". In 2021, Marvel published ''The Darkhold: Blade''
one-shot One shot may refer to: Film and television * One-shot film, a feature film shot in one long take with no edits, or manufactured to look like so * ''One Shot'' (2005 film), a Sri Lankan action film directed by Ranjan Ramanayake * ''One Shot'', a ...
written by
Daniel Kibblesmith Daniel Jordan Kibblesmith (born October 9, 1983) is an American writer and comedian who has written for television, comic books, and websites. As a writer for ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' he is a five-time Emmy nominee. Early life Kibb ...
, presenting an
alternate ending An alternate ending (or alternative ending) is an ending of a story that was considered, or even written or produced, but ultimately discarded in favour of another resolution. Generally, alternative endings are considered to have no bearing on t ...
to the film, where Deacon Frost succeeded in his plans at using his power attained as avatar of La Magra to turn billions of humans around the world into vampires. In 2024, Snipes reprised his role as Blade in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...
film ''
Deadpool & Wolverine ''Deadpool & Wolverine'' is a 2024 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Deadpool and Wolverine (character), Wolverine. Produced by Marvel Studios, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment, and distributed ...
''.


See also

* '' Rise: Blood Hunter'' * '' Vampire Assassin'' *
Vampire films Vampire films have been a staple in world cinema since the era of silent films, so much so that the depiction of vampires in popular culture is strongly based upon their depiction in films throughout the years. The most popular cinematic adaptat ...


References


External links


Official website
* * *
''Blade''
at Marvel.com
Blade turns Ten. Interviews with the cast members from the movie
{{David S. Goyer 1998 films 1998 fantasy films 1998 action thriller films 1998 horror films 1998 science fiction films 1990s American films 1990s English-language films 1990s chase films 1998 science fiction action films 1990s superhero films 1990s monster movies American neo-noir films American vigilante films American chase films American superhero films American science fiction action films American fantasy films American films about revenge American vampire films American splatter films American action horror films African-American films African-American horror films African-American superhero films Afrofuturist films English-language science fiction horror films English-language science fiction action films Kung fu films Martial arts horror films Superhero horror films Fictional-language films Fiction about matricide Films adapted into television shows Works subject to a lawsuit Films set in 1967 Films set in 1997 Films set in Los Angeles Films set in Moscow Films shot in California Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in Vancouver Films shot in Moscow Live-action films based on Marvel Comics Blade (comics) films Blade (franchise) Morbius Films directed by Stephen Norrington Films with screenplays by David S. Goyer Films scored by Mark Isham Films produced by Peter Frankfurt Films produced by Wesley Snipes New Line Cinema films