'Underworld' And 'Blade' Crossover Almost Happened Until Marvel Staked It In The Heart
Once upon a time, in the early aughts, there were two huge vampire franchises battling for supremacy at the theaters and in our hearts. Now the star of one of them has revealed that they almost merged into a crossover for the ages.
While promoting her new action-revenge thriller Jolt, actress Kate Beckinsale told Variety that she was hoping for a mashup between her vampire franchise Underworld and the Wesley Snipes-led Blade franchise. Unfortunately, the folks at Marvel had other plans for the vampire-hunting daywalker.
"I really wanted them to do an 'Underworld'-'Blade' mashup. What a duo that would be," she told Variety. "I would definitely do that, but I think they just wanted to reboot Blade as Blade so they didn't go for it."
Beckinsale played the vampire assassin Selene in four of the five Underworld films, which spanned from 2003 to 2016. (She was absent in the third film/prequel, The Rise of the Lycans, where Beckinsale look-alike Rhona Mitra played the vampire lead, Sonja.)
A crossover between the slick, stylish Underworld movies and the gory, campy Blade movies would have been an early-'00s goth kid's dream. Both series featured tongue-in-cheek humor, buckets of blood, and massive action sequences. The only potential downside would be the astronomical budget for leather polish.
Guns, Blood, and Leather
This isn't the first time Beckinsale has brought up her desire to do a Blade/Underworld crossover. She was equally outspoken at New York Comic-Con in 2016, where she first shared the idea with fans. It's a real shame that Marvel hasn't come around to the idea, because there's a whole audience of horror fans ready to embrace it.
While it's a shame that we never got that crossover, at least there's a new reboot of the Blade franchise to look forward to. The new addition to the MCU will be directed by Bassam Tariq and star Mahershala Ali as the vampiric daywalker. Watchmen screenwriter Stacy Osei-Kuffour will pen the script. Marvel isn't likely to add the Underworld universe to the MCU, but if they do, Beckinsale is ready. She still has her signature black leather pants from Underworld and she's ready to don them the moment Marvel comes knocking.
"I know exactly where they are," she said. "You never know who you want to impress."
Maybe trying to get a Blade/Underworld crossover made is as tough as a motherf***er trying to ice skate uphill, but I'm glad Beckinsale hasn't given up yet.