The actor’s return as the half-vampire “daywalker” in superhero threequel comes 25 years and 340 days after he first played the character in 1998’s “Blade,” according to Guinness World Records, securing him the record of the longest career as a live-action Marvel character. Snipes beat out his co-star Hugh Jackman, whose first appearance as Wolverine came 24 years ago in 2000’s “X-Men.”

Snipes’ surprise cameo as Blade also earned him another Guinness World Record: the longest gap between character appearances in Marvel films. According to Guinness, he last played the character 19 years and 231 day ago in the 2004 film “Blade: Trinity,” surpassing Alfred Molina’s 17-year gap between playing Doc Ock in 2004’s “Spider-Man 2” and 2021’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home.”

Snipes’ Blade was among the many cameos in “Deadpool & Wolverine,” starring Ryan Reynolds and Jackman. In the movie, the vampire hunter joins forces with the title characters, as well as Elektra (Jennifer Garner), X-23 (Dafne Keen) and Gambit (Channing Tatum), to battle Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin) and her mutant minions.

“Deadpool & Wolverine,” released July 26, has already broken multiple records at the box office. The film earned $205 million in its opening weekend, ranking as the eighth-best debut of all time and setting the record for the biggest R-rated opening weekend ever. “Deadpool & Wolverine” also landed by far the biggest start of 2024, overtaking Disney’s Pixar sequel “Inside Out 2” ($155 million debut). It currently stands as the second-highest-grossing domestic release of the year.

Fact Check: This Isn’t a Real Poster for a ‘Blade’ Sequel

Claim:

An image shared online in July 2024 showed an official poster for a new “Blade” movie starring Wesley Snipes, produced by Marvel Studios and coming to theaters in 2025.

Rating:

On July 28, 2024, a Facebook post from the page YODA BBY ABY claimed to show a poster for a fourth installment of the “Blade” franchise, with Wesley Snipes reprising the titular role he played in 1998’s “Blade,” 2002’s “Blade 2,” and 2004’s “Blade: Trinity.”

The caption of the Facebook post claimed the new film, also titled “Blade,” would be released in July 2025. It read as follows:

BLADE RETURNS!!! WESLEY SNIPES!!!

Marvel Studios presents Blade, starring Wesley Snipes as the iconic vampire hunter in a thrilling new chapter. Set decades after the original trilogy, Blade faces a powerful new adversary that threatens the balance between the human and supernatural worlds. Catch the action in cinemas this July 2025.

(Facebook user YODA BBY ABY)

At the time of this writing, the post had received around 61,000 reactions and 5,200 comments, many of which expressed enthusiasm for the alleged project. One commenter wrote, “Yes, glad it’s Wesley!! Keeping it at least some originality to it!”

However, the above claim was fabricated and there was no evidence this was an authentic poster for a new “Blade” movie starring Wesley Snipes and set to release in 2025.

Although Snipes dusted off Blade’s signature black sunglasses for a cameo in 2024’s “Deadpool & Wolverine,” in July 2024 he told Entertainment Weekly that he was done with the “Blade” series and now “on to other things, and bigger and better things, as well.”

A potential new “Blade” installment starring Snipes was rumored in 2016, according to entertainment website IndieWire, but that film never materialized. Snipes is also not involved with a legitimate planned Marvel Studios reboot of the franchise, which has Mahershala Ali slated to star in the titular role.

The rumor about a fourth installment in the “Blade” franchise starring Snipes and set for a 2025 release originated with YODA BBY ABY — a Facebook account that describes its output as being humorous or satirical in nature. Its Facebook bio states: “I’m just here to eat frogs, lift rocks and be satirical. The page is 100% satire and fake news.”

YODA BBY ABY has a history of making up stories about nonexistent reboots, remakes, and sequels of beloved films and TV shows for shares and comments. Snopes has addressed claims from the same account in the past, including the assertion that Star Wars-universe show “The Acolyte” had been had renewed for a second season and a rumor that Dwayne Johnson and Pete Davidson were set to star in a live-action remake of “The Emperor’s New Groove.”

For background, here is why we alert readers to rumors created by sources that call their output humorous or satirical.