New Goyer Interview at CBR.

[tamron]

Pretty interesting read.

He confirms Michael Jai White was up for Blade, but implies that he ultimately didn't get it because his take was too much like Snipes'.

http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=8291

Stay tuned to CBR, they say an interview with Sticky is coming later today.

 

[Bishop2]

Pretty interesting read.

He confirms Michael Jai White was up for Blade, but infers that he ultimately didn't get it because his take was too much like Snipes'.

Damn you Goyer, god damn you. It's the same continuity! Ergo, THAT'S A GOOD THING. Sticky's take is like Snipes without a personality! At least he's finally starting to get a little bit of persona thanks to the most recent episode, but again, that persona is basically just a copy of the Snipes persona - only without as much emotion, without the same level of expression. It's a robo-snipes. Obviously White would've been the superior pick, partially due to the fact that he could really do the fighting moves and martial arts and partially due to the fact that it always seemed like he would bring more of the Snipes-style persona to the fore. This only confirms that they made a massive mistake.

 

[DarKush]

I got to agree that not casting White was a mistake. There is a thing for continuity of character, esp. at the beginning of the series so that it won't throw off Blade movie fans all that much.

I think White had the martial arts skills, the genre credibility, and the acting talent to play the role where it's similar enough to Wesley's Blade but still broad enough to put his own stamp on things. Sticky's gotten better since the pilot, but I think White has a more dynamic presence.

 

[tamron]

Sticky interview is up. Nothing new, though.

http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=8317

 

[Golgo-13]

Goyers a ****ing fool! Was his feud with Wesley that bad after Trinity, that he didn't want anyone around him who reminded him of Snipes?

 

[BDOUBLEO]

I think Goyer, New Line etc went the safe route with Sticky. This will be his first main starring role so he would be pretty much do what they say. Having MJW who is a pretty established actor and martial artist could probably intimidate the producers and crew if he didn't like something much like how Snipes was. So thats why I feel they went with Sticky so they can mold him the way they want.

 

[Golgo-13]

But Sticky is intimidating in his own right. He comes from a rough neighhorhood, i'm sure he has dangerous friends ..plus alot of non-blacks are pretty intimidated by rappers....

 

[Bishop2]

I think Goyer, New Line etc went the safe route with Sticky. This will be his first main starring role so he would be pretty much do what they say. Having MJW who is a pretty established actor and martial artist could probably intimidate the producers and crew if he didn't like something much like how Snipes was. So thats why I feel they went with Sticky so they can mold him the way they want.

Michael is nobody these days. What was his last major role? The villian in the mega-bomb "Universal Soldier: The Return"? He couldn't intimidate anyone.

 

[DarKush]

Michael is nobody these days. What was his last major role? The villian in the mega-bomb "Universal Soldier: The Return"? He couldn't intimidate anyone.

I think BDOUBLEO has a point. Though Michael Jai White isn't an A-list star, he does have established genre credentials, martial arts experience, and has acted in a variety of different roles. And that's more than Sticky had before Blade: The Series, and even now.

I've been skeptical of White's acting ability since Spawn, but I've seen a couple roles of his since then to know that he can definitely play Blade. As a seasoned actor, he might have his own ideas about how to do Blade similar to how Wesley did, and it could possibly lead to clashes with Goyer.

Sticky appears much more malleable. It's comes across to me that he's just happy to be there in interviews. That's not necessarily a bad thing. Having an enthusiatic, accomodating actor probably leads to a smoother production.

But I think Sticky would be, and apparently has been, much less critical toward the placement of Krista's character over his.

 

[XBRoughneck]

But I think Sticky would be, and apparently has been, much less critical toward the placement of Krista's character over his.

Bingo. Goyer wanted less focus on the Blade character and a guy like Sticky would be less inclined to complain. Who cares if the show is called "Blade".

He got so burnt after dealing with Wesley's strong character he's blinded himself to the Blade hero.

 

[BDOUBLEO]

I think BDOUBLEO has a point. Though Michael Jai White isn't an A-list star, he does have established genre credentials, martial arts experience, and has acted in a variety of different roles. And that's more than Sticky had before Blade: The Series, and even now.

I've been skeptical of White's acting ability since Spawn, but I've seen a couple roles of his since then to know that he can definitely play Blade. As a seasoned actor, he might have his own ideas about how to do Blade similar to how Wesley did, and it could possibly lead to clashes with Goyer.

Sticky appears much more malleable. It's comes across to me that he's just happy to be there in interviews. That's not necessarily a bad thing. Having an enthusiatic, accomodating actor probably leads to a smoother production.

But I think Sticky would be, and apparently has been, much less critical toward the placement of Krista's character over his.

Exactly, thats what I was trying to say with less words, lol

 

[zanos]

I got to agree that not casting White was a mistake. There is a thing for continuity of character, esp. at the beginning of the series so that it won't throw off Blade movie fans all that much.

I think White had the martial arts skills, the genre credibility, and the acting talent to play the role where it's similar enough to Wesley's Blade but still broad enough to put his own stamp on things.

Yeah but they weren't looking for those things, that's why they went with Sticky.

 

[DarKush]

Yeah but they weren't looking for those things, that's why they went with Sticky.

That poses the question of what they were looking for then? And why?

Sticky is okay, but he was a riskier proposition to hang the series on going in, IMO. He had some acting experience, but not as much as Michael Jai White's. He also had made a name for himself with Onyx back in the day, but that was a long time ago. White was better known to genre fans, who Blade the Series would likely need to attract and keep in order to make the show work.

It's all academic now of course. Sticky has improved since the pilot, and the show appears headed to another season. But I still think it was a risky move on Goyer's part to pick him over White.

 

[zanos]

It's simple he most likely never liked Wesley's portrayal of the character.

 

[Bishop2]

It's simple he most likely never liked Wesley's portrayal of the character.

He actually did like it for the first two movies... but after the third he suddenly didn't. Because, of course, they had a falling out.

 

[Golgo-13]

Goyer is actually the one who lobbied for wesley to play snipes in the first place, so it's obviously because of their falling out.