Fresh off his comeback role in the soon-to-be released Brooklyn’s Finest, actor Wesley Snipes is reportedly showing interest in participating in a new Blade installment. The news comes as a surprise for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the actor’s torrid past with the series.
In 2005, Snipes sued New Line Cinema and director David S. Goyer over a salary dispute on the third film in the franchise, Blade: Trinity. He claimed that the studio didn’t pay his full salary, and that he was intentionally disregarded when it came to casting decisions and other development issues. This might not have been an issue had the film performed well, but it netted only $52 million, compared to the previous two installments which made $70 million and $82 million respectively.
Yet Arrow in the Head reports that Snipes discussed the possibility on the red carpet for his new film, stating that there had been some talk about a Blade 4, and that he would do it if the script was right. Snipes really has nothing to lose at the moment — since the disappointing release of Trinity, he has battled ongoing tax evasion issues, and all seven of his films have gone straight-to-DVD.
The emphasis on a good script will hopefully push a potential fourth film closer towards the compelling thematics of the first two installments (directed by Stephen Norrington & Guillermo del Toro, respectively), which contained an appropriate balance of bloodlust and pathos.
There have been rumblings of a potential continuation in this series for several years, including a spin-off prequel trilogy starring Stephen Dorff. That project seems to have stalled, maybe partly because it’s difficult to conceive of a prequel when your lead actor is twelve years older. It’s hard to see where Snipes would fit into this sort of reboot, but at this point, everything is still very much up in the air.
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