The film rights of two popular characters, Blade and Ghost Rider have returned to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Marvel, which recently won the screen rights of 'Daredevil' and 'The Punisher', can now make films based on these characters.
Prior to venturing into the business of film making, Marvel Studios used to licence out its characters to other studios. According to its agreement, these studios were allowed to make films based on these characters as long as they have a film (or sequel or reboot) in production within the allotted time frame. If they fail to meet this criterion, the rights revert back to Marvel.
With no sequels or reboots in active development, Ghost Rider from Sony Pictures and Blade from New Line Cinema have reverted back to Marvel.
The news, which appears in the latest edition of Entertainment Weekly (via Slashfilm), confirms the return of these characters to Marvel, which would mean that Nicolas Cage's tenure in the title role of Ghost Rider would come to end now. "Whenever a character comes back to us, it's usually because the other studios don't want to make the movies anymore - and that usually means the [previous] movies may not have been particularly well-received," Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige was quoted as saying to Entertainment Weekly.
While there has not been a 'Blade' movie since 2004, the last Ghost Rider film, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, grossed only $50 million domestic and $132 million total. However, Feige clarified that the return of these characters does not mean they will be made movies soon. "They all have potential, but we're not going to say 'We got it back - make it," he said. Given the fact that Marvel has several projects in the pipeline that go into 2015, it would take another three to four years before we get to see these characters on the big screen.
