Age: 52
male
Mahershala Ali (/məˈhɜːrʃələ/ mə-HUR-shə-lə; born Mahershalalhashbaz Gilmore on February 16, 1974) is an American actor. He has received multiple accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2019, and in 2020, The New York Times ranked him among the 25 greatest actors of the 21st century. After pursuing an MFA degree from New York University, Ali began his career as a regular on television series Crossing Jordan (2001–02) and Threat Matrix (2003–04), before his breakthrough role as Richard Tyler in the science fiction series The 4400 (2004–07). His first major film role was in the David Fincher-directed fantasy The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008). He gained wider attention for supporting roles in the final two films of the original The Hunger Games film series and in House of Cards, for which he received his first Primetime Emmy Award nomination. Ali won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances as a drug dealer in the drama Moonlight (2016) and as Don Shirley in the comedy-drama Green Book (2018). He is the first Black actor to win two Academy Awards in the same category and the second Black actor to win multiple acting Oscars. Ali won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program for executive producing We Are the Dream: The Kids of the Oakland MLK Oratorical Fest (2020). In 2019, he played a troubled police officer in the third season of the HBO anthology crime series True Detective, and in 2020, he starred in the second season of the Hulu comedy-drama series Ramy. He was nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards for both performances. Ali has also played Cornell "Cottonmouth" Stokes in the first season of the Netflix series Luke Cage (2016) and voiced Aaron Davis in the animated films Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023). Description above from the Wikipedia article Mahershala Ali, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Blade has spent nine years hunting vampires from the shadows, protecting a world that doesn't even know the supernatural exists. When ancient vampire Lilith, daughter of Dracula, begins harvesting the blood of powerful vampires across Romania with the help of Deacon Frost, Blade discovers they are preparing a ritual to resurrect Judas Iscariot—the original vampire. Lilith believes Judas will reward her by making her his queen, but Dracula knows the resurrection would bring eternal darkness and destroy modern vampires. Desperate to stop his daughter, Dracula reluctantly enlists Blade, who agrees only because he knows something far worse could emerge if Judas eradicates the vampires he understands. Blade begins the hunt alongside Werewolf by Night, Jack Russell, his closest ally, as well as Hannibal King, Abigail Whistler and Skinner. Stephen Grant, operating as Mr. Knight, helps Blade during the early investigation before the team travels deeper into Romania. Along the way, Lilith and Frost slaughter ancient vampires for their blood. Blade eventually learns that the ritual is far more dangerous than Lilith realizes. At a massive Blood Rave, Blade's team attacks Lilith and Frost. They defeat Frost and seemingly stop Lilith, but the ritual has already begun. Judas returns only as a terrifying Wraith. Blade faces him and, though he could never defeat the true Judas, manages to destroy this incomplete manifestation. Lilith and Frost escape after Lilith receives a horrifying vision of what Judas would have done. They disappear into hiding. Blade's allies return to their own lives, while Blade visits Dracula on the Throne of Blood. Dracula warns that something far worse is coming and says they can no longer remain enemies. Whatever is coming will require everyone. In the darkness, a twisted smile appears. Red skin pierces the void as flames consume the screen. Cut to black.
