Oscar-winning actor Mahershala Ali was announced as the vampire-slaying renegade Blade during the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con. Finally, the actor is slowly coming out with how he feels about the role and his excitement to get started with this new project.

Empire magazine interviewed the actor who is going to be one of the future leading figures of Marvel’s Phase 4. During the interview Mahershala Ali opened up about his first experience as the Daywalker, “The Marvel world is obviously the biggest in film, and just to get my little introduction to that – starting with the Comic-Con a couple of years ago, and now the very early stages of stepping into the shoes of the character – it felt special and really cool. I’m excited to get going and do more.”

Those who haven’t seen Eternals yet and do not appreciate spoilers should better skip this next part of the interview as Mr. Ali talked about his very brief intervention during the Eternals after-credit scene. His voice as the dampyre Blade can be heard for the first time, “It was scary. Because, you know, you’re talking before you’re filming it. I’m pretty particular about my choices, like most actors, and so having to make some choices – even with a line, vocally – this early on, it brought up some very real anxieties. And it made the job real. It’s like ‘Okay, this is happening now’, you know, and that’s exciting.”

When asked if he has already stepped into Blade’s shoes, shades, sword, and black leather jacket, Mr. Ali just answered, “We’re getting there. We’re getting close.” The movie is set for release on October 7, 2022.