10 Terrible TV Adaptations Of Classic Films (That Everybody Forgot About)
1. Blade: The Series
Adaptation Of – Blade (1998)
Huge announcements relating to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) are now so commonplace, but one of this year’s most pleasantly surprisingly revelations was that the vampire hunter Blade would be returning to the big screen, played by Oscar winner Mahershala Ali, post-2021.
Marvel’s status as a cinematic juggernaut can be traced back to the 1998 film adaptation of the character, their first foray into the world of cinema after a pair of direct-to-video travesties.
Captivating without being groundbreaking, the low budget Wesley Snipes starring actioner nevertheless made back more than twice its budget and paved the way for two sequels, the passable Blade II and the downright dire Blade: Trinity. This was the first of three comic film abominations that Ryan Reynolds was a part of before he finally hit the mark with Deadpool.
Blade: The Series followed Trinity on Spike in 2006, swapping Snipes for rapper ‘Sticky Fingaz’. Despite attracting the highest ever viewing numbers for the network, it quickly fell by the wayside, beset by high costs and fallout from the poorly-received film.
Cancelled after one season, Blade’s television foray left the character in limbo for a long time, but Ali’s fresh take is now hotly anticipated, so maybe that was a good thing after all.