Contrary to popular belief, the link between horror and comic books is not so distant and there are already many screen adaptations to prove that, including 1994's The Crow, the more recent Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and, most definitively so far, Blade. The 1998 hit from New Line Cinema starred established action hero Wesley Snipes in the title role of a human (born Eric Brooks) with all the strengths but none of the weaknesses of a vampire, which easily makes him the ultimate hunter of the most vicious bloodsuckers. With a new interpretation from Marvel Studios in the works starring Mahershala Ali, we cannot think of a better time to catch the original Blade movies streaming, so let us point you in the right direction.
Blade (1998)
With the help of his mentor (Kris Kristofferson), a naturally born half-man, half-vampire (Wesley Snipes) with furious hate toward creatures of the night tries to help cure a doctor (N’Bushe Wright) from becoming one herself, which leads him to a standoff against one of his most powerful enemies yet, Deacon Forst (Stephen Dorff). Released at a time when R-rated comic book movies were still rare, director Stephen Norrington and writer David S. Goyer’s stylish, blood-soaked adaptation of Marv Wolfman's Blade series became highly influential for the state of the genre going forward.
Stream Blade on HBO Max.
Rent (or buy) Blade on Amazon.
Blade II (2002)
Blade is forced to form an alliance with a council ran by his sworn enemies in order to rid the world of an even greater threat: a race of creatures known as the Reapers, which feed on both vampires and humans alike to quench their insatiable bloodlust. Guillermo del Toro, who would later return to the comic book movie genre with Hellboy and Hellboy II: The Golden Army, brought his dazzling, signature visual style to Blade II - the bigger, bloodier second installment of the franchise, which was once again penned by David S. Goyer.
Stream Blade II on HBO Max.
Rent (or buy) Blade II on Amazon.
Blade: Trinity (2004)
While on the run from the FBI, Blade must join forces with a group of fellow vampire hunters called Nightstalkers in order to take down the most famous and feared bloodsucker of them all: Dracula (Dominic Purcell). Future Deadpool movies star Ryan Reynolds made his Marvel movie debut as Hannibal King alongside Jessica Biel as Abigail Whistler in Blade: Trinity - the final installment of the original Wesley Snipes-led franchise which David S. Goyer ended up directing himself.
Stream Blade: Trinity on HBO Max.
Rent (or buy) Blade: Trinity on Amazon.
After revisiting this action-packed trilogy, are you excited to see what Mahershala Ali will bring to the role in the upcoming reboot, or will Wesley Snipes always be Blade to you? Or are you the kind of person who was actually a bigger fan of Spike TV's short-lived TV series spin-off starring rapper Sticky Fingaz as the lead? Well, to be honest, as far as we are concerned, slaying creatures of the undead is fun to watch no matter who is wielding the sword.
