Marvel Zombies was first announced at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con as part of Marvel Studios' splashy "Marvel Animation" slate reveal. We've heard very little since then, and while the show is in the late stages of production, there's no official word on whether it will be released this year or if it'll slip down the release calendar.
We recently told you that Mahershala Ali will lend his voice to Blade in the animated series. The actor made his MCU debut in Eternals' post-credits scene and, with the Daywalker's solo outing no closer to being released in theaters, it's likely in Marvel Zombies that we'll get to see the Oscar-winner's take on Blade for the first time.
However, it won't necessarily be the "classic" Blade we all know and love from the comics.
According to scooper @CanWeGetToast (via Toonado.com), the plan is for Blade to be the new Fist of Khonshu in Marvel Zombies, making him the new Moon Knight. This sounds like a crazy idea, but the vampire hunter is a solid fit to do Khonshu's bidding in a world overrun by the undead.
We'd assume this means Blade is getting a new look and this was likely done to differentiate the character from what we'll see when that live-action solo outing finally arrives in theaters next year (or, more likely, 2026 now Marvel Studios has Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts, and The Fantastic Four dated for 2025).
The animated series reimagines the Marvel Universe as a new generation of heroes battle against an ever-spreading zombie scourge.
When Marvel Zombies was announced, character art revealed that a team consisting of Shang-Chi, Ms. Marvel, Hawkeye, Yelena Belova, Jimmy Woo, Death Dealer, Red Guardian, and Katy will clash with undead Variants of Ikaris, Abomination, Captain Marvel, Scarlet Witch, Okoye, Ghost, and Captain America.
In the comic books, the concept of these undead superheroes started as a five-issue limited series first published in 2005. The series was written by Robert Kirkman (who would later create The Walking Dead) with art by Sean Phillips and covers by Arthur Suydam.
The story was set in an alternate universe where the world's superhero population has been infected with a virus which turned them into zombies. The series was spun out of a story arc in the pages of Ultimate Fantastic Four, where the zombie Reed Richards tricked his Ultimate counterpart into opening a portal to the zombie universe only for the latter to prevent the former from ever coming to his universe.
While the concept originates in the comics, it wasn't until What If...? season 1 that Marvel Studios finally put the spotlight on undead superheroes. In an episode titled "What If... Zombies?!" we watched as several fan-favourite heroes, including Spider-Man, fought off undead a whole host of undead fan-favourites.
How do you feel about Blade serving as the MCU's new Moon Knight in this alternate reality?