Although Marvel fans might still have D23 on the brain, especially because that fan event saw the announcement of a substantial X-Men lineup for the MCU in addition to it being more recent, just a few weeks before that, San Diego Comic Con also had plenty of shockers in store. Among the biggest San Diego Comic Con reveals for the MCU were confirmation of Black Panther 3’s release date and the news that David Jonsson would be stepping into the role of Prince T’Challa, new footage from Avengers: Doomsday, and confirmation that Ryan Gosling has finally gotten his wish and will be playing Ghost Rider—a role he has long and openly wanted—in the MCU.
In the time since, the MCU’s Ghost Rider has gotten an official July 28, 2028, release date, but very few story details are currently known, particularly once rumors, however heavy they are, are taken off the table. We do know, as it was confirmed during San Diego Comic Con, that Shawn Levy will be directing, and it was subsequently confirmed directly to ComicBook that Ryan Gosling approached Marvel for the role. Now, Levy has offered additional insight into what that process looked like, and even as story specifics remain elusive, these comments should have Marvel fans even more excited about this upcoming movie.
Speaking with People, Levy shared that when Gosling pitched Ghost Rider to him, it took only a few minutes before Levy was totally convinced. He explained, “Literally six minutes into him telling me about it, I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s go. We’re doing that.’ We walked it into Kevin [Feige], and here we are.” Although that still doesn’t disclose what exactly this movie will entail story-wise, it is a shocking detail, and it suggests that Gosling’s idea for the movie is unique and exciting enough that Levy was won over almost immediately. Clearly, Kevin Feige was also able to be convinced, and particularly in an era when Disney seems to be tightening up a bit in terms of the projects it is green lighting (which seems clear with both Star Wars and Marvel), that is notable and a major positive sign.
In fact, Levy and Gosling are kind of doing the impossible right now, as they are not only the director and star of Ghost Rider, respectively, but also the director and star of the only upcoming Star Wars movie with an official release date, Star Wars: Starfighter. It was, evidently, through their work on that movie that Levy and Gosling found themselves pitching Ghost Rider as well, and clearly, they have a working relationship that works well enough for Disney to take two massive gambles on them.
After all, Starfighter isn’t just Star Wars’ next theatrical release. It is also the franchise’s current best attempt to revitalize the fanbase after the sequel trilogy turned many fans off of Star Wars and The Mandalorian and Grogu failed to perform as well as many had hoped at the box office. Now, audiences can look forward to this dynamic duo’s 2027 movie Starfighter and 2028 movie Ghost Rider, both of which are keeping their cards close to the vest.
