Endgame Can Secretly Explain Blade’s Phase 4 MCU Debut

Marvel is gearing up for vampires in Phase 4 with the upcoming Blade, and the events of the MCU all the way up to Avengers: Endgame can explain why the vampire hunter hasn’t been revealed to agencies such as the Avengers or SHIELD until now. Blade made his MCU debut in the post-credits scene of Marvel’s Eternals. Played by Mahershala Ali, his cameo was off-screen and limited to one line. It was the most recent acknowledgment of vampires in the MCU, but it’s yet to be explained why Earth’s protectors haven’t been focused on Blade or the bloodsuckers previously.

Vampires have been mentioned in passing prior to Blade’s Phase 4 MCU debut. In Thor: Ragnorok Korg dismisses a large wooden fork as a potential weapon, saying it was “not really useful unless you’re fighting off three vampires that are huddled together.” After that, Disney+ show Loki acknowledged the existence of vampires, indicating that they are comparable in terms of power/danger to the Kree and Titans such as Avengers: Endgame‘s Thanos. These references along with Blade’s reveal in Eternals indicate that the MCU will have a major role for vampires going forward.

Given this level of threat that Marvel vampires seem to possess, and that they’ve been around for a while in the MCU’s history, it’s strange that their presence hasn’t been revealed or acknowledged by the Avengers or SHIELD. One explanation could be that the attention of agencies such as SHIELD was solely focused on galactic threats that continued to amp up from the events of the first Avengers movie. Since the Chitauri invasion, Earth has been under regular attack all the way up to Avengers: Endgame, and now into Phase 4. When the world is being invaded by the armies of Thanos, the authorities are going to be looking to the skies for threats rather than the shadows. They therefore may not be aware of Blade’s existence, especially as he’s so efficient at his job, keeping the vampires in check.

Alternatively, SHIELD and the Avengers could have been aware of the existence of vampires, and of Blade’s hunting activities. Again given Blade’s powers and abilities, an unofficial scheme of delegation could be in place, leaving the vampire hunting to the vampire hunter while they dealt with more immediate world-ending threats. After all, despite the resources of the Avengers and SHIELD, there is only so much that they can do, especially as for much of the recent MCU timeline they were bound by the Sokovia Accords. As it’s unlikely that the United Nations would be in the know about vampires, they wouldn’t be in a position to sign off on missions to deal with these supernatural threats.

Whatever the eventual in-universe reason for Blade making his MCU debut in Phase 4, the events leading up to Avengers: Endgame and beyond can explain why he hasn’t been revealed till now. With Blade being a loner, it’s unlikely he’s comfortable working with the likes of SHIELD. Still, Blade revealing himself now points to vampires becoming more of a threat for the MCU than before. With Marvel gearing up their supernatural side of the MCU with Disney+ show Moon Knight and Werewolf By Night getting a Halloween special (as well as Sony’s MCU adjacent Morbius) fans may well get some answers before Mahershala Ali gets his own solo film in Blade.

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