Ryan Gosling is finally joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The “Project Hail Mary” star will play Ghost Rider in a new standalone film, Marvel Studios executive Kevin Feige announced on stage in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con. The film will be directed by Shawn Levy and is scheduled for release in 2028.
Levy is no stranger to the Marvel world, most recently directing and producing the blockbuster film Deadpool & Wolverine. He and Gosling recently collaborated on the new film Star Wars: Starfighter, directed by Levy and starring Gosling. The film is scheduled to be released on May 28, 2027.
“I’m getting the best flashback vibe here, because I was here two years ago when we showed Deadpool and Wolverine,” said Levy, who joined Gosling and Feige on stage in Hall H. “I’ll never forget that night because I was introduced to the greatest fan base ever. Gosling is absolutely shitty, and I say that with a lot of respect. We spent a lot of time working on Starfighter last year, and when Ryan started talking about this character, I took the opportunity to say, ‘Brother, let’s get on board.’ See you in 2028! ”
Gosling becomes the second actor to play the vengeful spirit in a movie, after Nicolas Cage played the fierce biker in two Sony films. The character was also portrayed by Gabriel Luna as a version of the comic book character Robbie Reyes in the Marvel and ABC series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Luna was scheduled to reprise the role in a standalone series on Hulu, but that project was canceled in 2019.
Cage first starred in the Sony film Ghost Rider in 2007, playing motorcycle stuntman Johnny Blaze. In the comics and its origin story movie, Johnny sells his soul to the demon Mephisto to cure his father’s cancer. Similar to A Deal with the Devil, Mephisto treats Johnny’s father, but still dies in a stunt accident. Johnny then bonds with a supernatural demon called the Spirit of Vengeance, which allows him to transform into a fiery skeletal biker. He also possesses superhuman strength, wields a fiery chain whip, and can force someone to suffer the mental pain he inflicted on others in Penance Star.
Cage reprized the role in the 2011 sequel Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, but reviews for both films were mostly negative.
The rights to Ghost Rider returned to Marvel Studios, who reinvented the character for the ABC television show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., with Gabriel Luna playing Robbie Reyes’ version of the character. He is a young Latino man who takes on the mantle of Ghost Rider.
Gosling has had a big year since starring in Project Hail Mary and will join the Star Wars universe in next year’s Starfighter spin-off.
