Ryan Gosling to join Marvel Cinematic Universe as Ghost Rider
The media franchise announced that Ryan Gosling will be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) as the title character in the new Ghost Rider movie.
Speaking during the surprise announcement at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday, Gosling said it’s a character he’s “wanted to play for a very long time.”
The film will be released in 2028 and will be the third film about the motorcycle-riding anti-hero. It will follow the 2007 film of the same name starring Nicolas Cage and its sequel, 2011’s Ghost Rider: Avenging Spirit.
At a separate event at the convention, actor Ryan Reynolds made a surprise appearance as Deadpool, the Marvel character he has played in a number of films.
This year’s convention heralded a number of Marvel updates for fans, including a special trailer for the upcoming movie Avengers: Doomsday and an announcement that Black Panther 3 will be released in 2028.
Johnny Depp made a special appearance, as did Rick Moranis when he announced the sequel to the 1987 parody film Spaceballs.
Before Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige made the big announcement about Gosling’s addition to Marvel, he said on stage that he’s often asked when Gosling will join the MCU.
Shortly after, the lights went out. When they returned, the actor took the stage to the cheers of screaming fans.
Gosling, a three-time Oscar nominee, said of the role: “Wow, is this really happening?”
He has previously spoken about his desire to take on this role. Appearing on Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast in March, the Hail Mary and La La Land star confirmed that he was in talks with Marvel.
Ghost Rider is the anti-hero identity of motorcycle stuntman Johnny Blaze.
The character’s story begins with him bonding with Zarathos, the Spirit of Vengeance, after making a deal with the villain Mephisto to save his surrogate father and grant him superpowers.
The film will be directed by Shawn Levy, whom Gosling described as the “only” director of the project.
Levy previously directed Deadpool and Wolverine in the MCU and is currently working with Gosling on Star Wars: Starfighter, which will be released next year.
Levy told the crowd that he and Gosling spent much of their free time on set daydreaming and exchanging ideas about Ghost Rider.
“When Ryan started talking about his vision for this character, we started riffing and eventually I said, ‘bro, let’s go,’ so guys, see you in 2028,” the director said.
Another celebrity, Ryan – Reynolds – appeared in person at a panel for the upcoming movie Avengers: Doomsday.
