Bassam Tariq is about to embark on the journey of delivering the MCU’s version of Blade, in which he promises to build upon the work Wesley Snipes did in the original film.

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Years before Robert Downey Jr. touched a script for Ironman, the stepping stones for what would become the Marvel Cinematic Universe had already been laid. Wesley Snipes in Blade is what set up the entire iconic run Marvel is on to this day. Snipes was a part of the experiment that proved Marvel could put butts into seats in theaters around the world and bring Marvel Comics to the big screen. The second RDJ said “I Am Ironman,” everyone acted like everything that happened before never existed. Most people do not even realize the Blade franchise released three movies before that.

Shortly after Avengers: Endgame crushed every record known to man, Marvel announced Mahershala Ali would be staring as the vampire slayer in their upcoming Blade film. Now the director, Bassam Tariq, is responding to everyone’s fears and promising to build upon the history Wesley created.

“What’s exciting about the film that we’re making is [there] hasn’t been a canon for Blade, as we’re reading through the comics and everything,” Tariq told IndieWire. “Him being a daywalker is the one thing that’s been established, and you know we can’t deny what Wesley Snipes did, which was he basically got this whole ball rolling.”

“A Black man created the superhero world that we’re in, that’s just the truth,” he said. “For me to now be working with somebody as talented and a juggernaut as Mahershala Ali, and the writer Stacy Osei-Kuffour, I’m just so—I’m so honored to be working with real Black juggernauts and Black talent. For me to just be with them in this room and listen and learn as I build this out, it’s really an honor.”

Respect and credit can go a long way and Wesley Snipes deserves every bit of it for his contributions. One man’s risk and great acting set up a multi-billion dollar run. When you think of the godfathers of the MCU, it’s Wesley Snipes AND Robert Downey Jr. They both need their flowers.

Hopefully, we get a cameo of Wesley and Mahershala putting in work together somewhere in the film. Snipes has already made sure to praise and congratulate Ali on the role, so now that the director is giving credit, we are one step closer to a collaboration.