MCU Theory: Blade Is The Nick Fury Of Phase 4's Dark Avengers Replacement
The original Avengers team is now over, though the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues telling the stories of some of its members, but this universe is now moving forward with new characters, stories, and themes, and in this new era, Blade could be taking the role of Nick Fury and form a team that can replace the Dark Avengers. The first three phases of the MCU, collectively known as the Infinity Saga, were all about Thanos (Josh Brolin) and his quest to acquire the Infinity Stones and the Infinity Gauntlet, with the purpose of wiping out half of life in the universe with the snap of his fingers.
The Infinity Saga reached its peak with Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, where Thanos got what he wanted and the surviving heroes reversed his snap, with all the MCU heroes later joining forces to defeat the Mad Titan and his armies for good. The MCU is now moving forward with its Phase 4, which covers movies and TV shows, and its main focus so far is the multiverse and its many dangers and possibilities, but it’s also setting up some new teams. Phase 4 already introduced its first superhero team in Eternals, which also marked the first “appearance” of a new character who could be setting up big things for the MCU: Blade (Mahershala Ali).
In 2019, Blade was announced to be joining the MCU in one of its future phases, with Mahershala Ali now taking over the role. Although Blade hasn’t made a proper appearance in the MCU yet, he made his debut in the post-credits scene of Eternals through a voice cameo, asking Dane Whitman (Kit Harington) if he was sure of what he was doing as he was about to touch the Ebony Blade. Blade’s appearance ended up being disappointing, but it could be setting up bigger things in the MCU, and it could be hinting at him taking Nick Fury’s (Samuel L. Jackson) place in Phase 4 and beyond.
Marvel has already left a couple of clues in its Phase 4 projects (and some that came before) that point at Blade’s arrival, such as Korg literally mentioning vampires in Thor: Ragnarok (which was initially seen as a joke), Mobius talking about vampires, and Casey keeping a crucifix along with some Infinity Stones in his desk in Loki. However, there have been no signs that could have pointed fans towards Blade’s debut in the MCU before his solo movie, so hearing his voice in Eternals was a surprise. Eternals dealt with something completely different and separate from vampires, as they had to stop the emergence of a new Celestial from the center of Earth and thus save the planet and humanity, so there wasn’t really room for the vampire hunter to show up. There was also no reason to believe he could be somehow linked to Dane Whitman, so naturally, viewers didn’t even know the mysterious voice talking to Dane was Blade until Eternals director, Chloé Zhao, confirmed it. Blade’s appearance was unexpected and was all about him talking to a new character as he prepared to go through a transformation, similar to how Nick Fury was introduced.
Nick Fury’s debut in the MCU was in the post-credits scene of Iron Man, and contrary to Blade’s disappointing cameo, this one was very exciting mostly because it was a proper appearance. Fury showed up at Tony Stark’s Malibu home one night to discuss the Avengers Initiative, taking Tony and viewers by surprise. Fury went on to become a key character throughout the Infinity Saga, and while he’s still an active character in the MCU and is set to return in the TV series Secret Invasion, Blade could be taking his place in Phase 4 and 5, though with a couple of changes and twists.
Blade’s appearance in Eternals was very brief and his one line doesn’t reveal much, but just the fact that he appeared to Dane Whitman as he was about to touch the Ebony Blade makes way for many possibilities. The biggest questions around Blade’s future in the MCU are all about when he will appear next and how and why he’s linked to Dane Whitman/Black Knight. The most popular theory says that Blade, along with Black Knight and Moon Knight (Oscar Isaac), will be forming a new team, though one darker than the Avengers: the Midnight Sons.
The Midnight Sons is a team of supernatural characters, and it made its first appearance in Ghost Rider vol. 3 #28 in 1992. In it, Ghost Rider received a vision where Lilith, Mother of All Demons, was resurrected and thus posed a great threat as she planned to use the Lilin, her demonic children, to take over Earth. Danny Ketch and Johnny Blaze formed the Midnight Sons in order to battle her and her army, and the team consisted of the Nightstalkers (Blade, Frank Drake, and Hannibal King), Morbius, Vengeance, and the Darkhold Redeemers (Sam Buchanan, Victoria Montesi, Louise Hastings, Modred the Mystic, and Jinx), all of them brought together by Doctor Strange. Since then, the Midnight Sons have faced a variety of enemies, such as Lilith and company, Zarathos, and even Blade when, with the help of a page from the Darkhold, he became Switchblade and almost killed all of his former teammates.
The MCU already has Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) as a well-established character, Blade is getting his own solo movie, Morbius is about to make his big-screen debut, Moon Knight is arriving soon with his TV show, and so is Werewolf by Night (Gael García Bernal), a member of the Midnight Sons in the comics who will lead the MCU’s Halloween Special. Although Black Knight isn’t part of the Midnight Sons in the comics, he could easily be part of the team in the MCU (it wouldn’t be the first time this universe makes changes to the source material to fits its narrative), and the character who makes the team happen won’t be Doctor Strange as in the comics, but Blade.
As mentioned above, Fury was the one who brought together the original Avengers team, recruiting them one by one, but with the team now over (and its surviving members going their own ways), and the Eternals being a team on their own, Fury will now focus on other missions, leaving his spot open. Given the similarities between Blade and Fury’s MCU debuts and the potential formation of the Midnight Sons, Blade could take Fury’s role as the one who assembles this dark team, starting with Dane Whitman, whose journey as Black Knight is just about to start. Blade is heavily rumored to appear in Moon Knight in a cameo role, further supporting the idea that Blade could be Phase 4 and 5’s Nick Fury and be the one who brings the Midnight Sons together – and his line in Eternals (“Sure you’re ready for that, Mr. Whitman?”) sounds like he already has something in mind for Dane Whitman.
Nick Fury was the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and founder of the Avengers, and while he did fight on some occasions, his work was mostly tactical, helping the Avengers from afar. Blade, on the other hand, while he could be Phase 4 and 5’s Nick Fury in terms of being the one who assembles the Midnight Sons, won’t limit himself to “behind-the-scenes” work. Blade is going to be an active superhero in the MCU, hence why he’s getting a solo movie, and with Phase 4 leaning more towards the MCU’s supernatural side (with Moon Knight, Werewolf by Night, and of course, vampires), he’s going to need some extra help. Each potential member of the MCU’s Midnight Sons has abilities that allow them to fight certain types of enemies, meaning that the team would need Blade’s skills and he won’t be able to take a more “comfortable” position as founder and leader like Nick Fury did.
As mentioned above, the possibilities for Blade’s future in the MCU are many, but there’s enough evidence already to believe that the Midnight Sons are on their way. Blade being the MCU’s new Nick Fury would be interesting and exciting to see as it’s like a darker mirror of Fury, and he would have a more active role in the future of the MCU than Fury did, fighting alongside his teammates and making a name for himself as a vampire hunter and a complex character.