Cosmic Ghost Rider Creator Debunks Claims of Marvel Studios Movie

To those hoping the reports circulating online were true, you might be out of luck; as many suspected, Cosmic Ghost Rider won’t be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe anytime soon. Earlier tonight, superstar comics writer Donny Cates — the creator of the space-faring Frank Castle alter ego — admitted on Twitter he knows the report was fake.

The report in question, something which earlier appeared on a site notorious for releasing such pieces, suggested Cosmic Ghost Rider would be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe at some point in Phase 5. Judging by the accelerated schedule Marvel Studios is going Phase 5 presumably starts in 2022, a date still far too early to introduce a character like the time-traveling space baddie.

Marvel Studios hasn’t been shy from introducing new characters to the silver screen, putting recent creations like Maria Hill or Ms. Marvel in live-action properties — technically Carol Danvers wasn’t even Captain Marvel until 2012. Newness aside, the studio would run into some difficults with a character technically under the Marvel Television umbrella.

Fans that have kept up with Marvel Television’s offerings the past few years will know The Punisher aired on Netflix for two seasons before the streaming giant pulled the plug on all of Marvel’s programming. As a result, the entire Marvel operation was unable to use any of those characters for two years after they were canceled. That means Frank Castle won’t be available for use, not even in development, until 2020 at the earliest.

Cosmic Ghost Rider, on the other hand, isn’t even quite two years old after first appearing in Thanos #13 in January 2018. Since then, the character has become a favorite among fans and has gotten two mini-series and supporting roles in Cates’ Guardians of the Galaxy. As of late, the character has also popped up in Jason Aaron’s Avengers run, though that storyline is still in its infancy.

Upcoming Marvel Studios projects include Black Widow on May 1, 2020, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier in Fall 2020, The Eternals on November 6, 2020, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings on February 12, 2021, WandaVision in Spring 2021, Loki in Spring 2021, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness on May 7, 2021, What If…? in Summer 2021, Hawkeye in Fall 2021, and Thor: Love and Thunder on November 5, 2021, and Black Panther 2 on May 6, 2022. Marvel Studios Disney+ series without release dates include Ms. Marvel, Moon Knight, and She-Hulk.

Do you think we’ll ever see Cosmic Ghost Rider on the silver screen? Would you rather see he or The Punisher? Share your thoughts in the comments below or by tweeting me at @AdamBarnhardt to chat all things MCU!