Mahershala Ali's Blade Is Dead, But His Thriller Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother Is Thriving
With the Marvel movie officially cancelled, Ali's new film with Bassam Tariq is jumping from six theaters to sixteen and sitting at 97 percent with critics.
Mahershala Ali's Blade movie is officially dead, but his next big moment is already here. His new thriller Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, directed by Bassam Tariq, is catching fire in theaters and has critics raving.
The film started in just six theaters two weeks ago. It expanded to 16 theaters this past weekend, and its box office climbed 326 percent. It also holds a 97 percent critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 74 reviews, along with a 92 percent audience score on the Popcornmeter.
The Blade Project Is Over
Marvel first announced Ali as the next Daywalker back in 2019. Years of development trouble and creative turnover followed, and now both Ali and Kevin Feige have confirmed that the movie has been cancelled.
Ali came into the role in a huge moment. He was fresh off two Oscar wins, for Moonlight and Green Book, and he earned an Emmy nomination that same year for his work in the third season of True Detective.
The film never got to production, and it lost people along the way. Aaron Pierre and Delroy Lindo both exited the cast before cameras ever rolled.
The director's chair kept changing too. Bassam Tariq was the first filmmaker attached, but he left in 2022. Yann Demange replaced him and later departed as well.
Ali's training for the part has paid off, even though Blade never reached the big screen. He is clearly not going anywhere, and plenty of movies and shows are still ahead of him.
A Reunion With Bassam Tariq
Here is the twist. Early last year, word came out that Ali and Tariq were teaming up on a new thriller, and that film is Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother. So the director who first stepped away from Blade ended up making a movie with its star anyway.
Tariq wrote and directed it. Ali plays Latif, a deeply religious hitman who is trying to balance his work, his faith and being a father.
When Latif's wife dies, he sets out across Houston to protect his children. Along the way he has to face the dangerous forces closing in on him, while the beliefs he holds start to come apart from the inside.
The cast also includes John Cho as Hwan Yoon and Giancarlo Esposito as Abdul. The movie is rated R, runs 112 minutes and is billed as a crime drama.
Strong Buzz Out of TIFF
The film premiered at TIFF a few weeks ago, and the reaction has been glowing ever since. A 97 percent critics score is nearly perfect, though with only 74 reviews counted, it could still shift a little. It likely will not move far in either direction.
That 326 percent jump from limited release to 16 theaters shows people are showing up. If you want to see Ali in a very different kind of role than the Daywalker, this is the one to look for in theaters.
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