After years of speculation, Ryan Gosling will officially be taking over the flaming helmet and fiery motorbike of Ghost Rider.
Amid a flurry of news for Marvel fans at Comic-Con this week – including a new Avengers: Doomsday trailer and Black Panther casting announcement – it was also announced on Saturday (25 July) that Gosling will be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The Barbie actor, 45, will play supernatural horror hero Johnny Blaze, aka Ghost Rider, in a forthcoming film directed by Deadpool & Wolverine’s Shawn Levy. The character was previously portrayed by Nicolas Cage in a 2007 film co-starring Eva Mendes, who is now married to Gosling.
The big reveal was met with huge applause from fans at Comic-Con in San Diego, and follows years of deliberation with several actors throwing their hat in the ring.
“Wow, is this really happening?” said Gosling on stage. “OK… As you know this is a character I’ve wanted to play for a very long time so Kevin [Feige, Marvel boss], Josh Horowitz, Hall H, thank you.” The film is scheduled for a theatrical release in 2028.
Gosling revealed his ambitions to play the character in 2022 during an appearance on Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast.
News of his casting will be welcomed by many, but some will be disappointed to learn that the role did not go to Norman Reedus who has long campaigned to play the part.
The Walking Dead star became a fan-favourite choice for the role after he first expressed interest in the character in 2016.
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Marvel boss Kevin Feige, however, seemed to reject the suggestion of Reedus as early as 2022 when he was asked for his thoughts on who should play Ghost Rider following Gosling’s interview.
“Hey man, if Ryan wants to be Ghost Rider…” Feige said at the time, going on to ask the interviewer who else wants to play the role, to which the reporter responded that Reedus famously has his eye on the character.
After naming Reedus, the interviewer asked Feige what he thinks, to which Feige replied: “… Gosling is unbelievable.”
He went on to say: “Ryan is amazing. I’d love to find a place for him in the MCU. He’s dressed up as Ken on Venice Beach and gets more press than giant movies coming out that weekend, it’s amazing.”
In 2022, photos of Gosling and Margot Robbie rollerblading on Venice Beach went viral. The two stars were in character as Barbie and Ken for Greta Gerwig’s blockbuster hit Barbie.
Elsewhere at Comic-Con, Marvel fans got a better look at Avengers: Doomsday in a new trailer that many praised as “50 bazillion times better” than the first clip that debuted earlier this week.
British actor David Jonsson was also unmasked as the new Black Panther in the forthcoming third entry of the franchise, in which he will play the son of Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa.