Marvel Zombies was officially 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.
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.
When plans for Marvel Zombies were revealed, 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.
As we first reported on Toonado.com, scooper @CanWeGetToast claims Blade will also have a lead role in the Disney+ series!
Several other social media leakers have since strongly hinted that Mahershala Ali will lend his voice to the Daywalker, making this latest Marvel Zombies rumour even more exciting. The Oscar-winner previously lent his voice to Eternals for a cameo, and it makes sense to further establish him in the role here.
The live-action Blade movie has been delayed multiple times, and we can't help but wonder whether it was meant to be released before the character's role in this animated series. With that in mind, Marvel Zombies may be pushed back until we can see the real deal in action.
The animated series reimagines the Marvel Universe as a new generation of heroes battle against an ever-spreading zombie scourge.
In the comic books, Marvel Zombies 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.
How would you feel about Blade making his proper MCU debut in this animated series?