Marvel Studios has confirmed Ryan Gosling will play Ghost Rider, set for theaters on July 28, 2028.
Marvel Studios has locked in the details for one of its most anticipated upcoming films. Ryan Gosling will star as Ghost Rider, and the movie now has a firm release date of July 28, 2028. Shawn Levy, who directed Deadpool and Wolverine, is set to direct.
The film was first announced during Marvel’s Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con, where Kevin Feige introduced Gosling to the crowd. According to Marvel, the actor stepped on stage to loud cheers and told the audience that Ghost Rider was a character he had wanted to play for a very long time. At the time, the studio gave only a 2028 window. The exact date came later, following the D23 fan event, when Disney updated its theatrical calendar.
Gosling will play Johnny Blaze, the supernatural antihero known as the Spirit of Vengeance. The character is a stunt motorcyclist who becomes bound to a demonic force, transforming into a flaming-skulled figure who rides a burning motorcycle.
Gosling is not the first actor to take on the part. He steps into the role after Nicolas Cage, who played Johnny Blaze in two Ghost Rider films produced by Sony in 2007 and 2011. Neither of those earlier films landed well with critics.
This version marks a fresh start. It is the first time Ghost Rider will appear on the big screen as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, making the film a full reboot of the character rather than a continuation. Marvel has not yet revealed plot details, and filming is expected to begin in early 2027.
The casting is one Gosling pushed for himself. Reports indicate he pitched the role directly and brought Levy on board, rather than being recruited by the studio. The two are already working together on the upcoming film Star Wars: Starfighter, which is due in theaters in May 2027. Levy has said the pair spent much of their downtime on that set trading ideas about Ghost Rider. Jonathan Tropper, who wrote Star Wars: Starfighter, is writing the Ghost Rider screenplay as well.
Gosling is best known for films including Barbie, Blade Runner 2049, La La Land and The Fall Guy. His move into a major superhero franchise is a notable step for an actor who has rarely tied himself to big studio properties.
Ghost Rider Joins a Packed Marvel 2028 Slate
The July date places Ghost Rider in the middle of a busy year for Marvel. According to Variety, it becomes the third Marvel film scheduled for 2028. An untitled X-Men film opens first on May 5, Ghost Rider follows on July 28, and Black Panther 3 arrives on December 15.
The three films are expected to help shape the next era of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following the events of Avengers: Secret Wars. After a lighter release calendar in the preceding year, the trio marks a deliberate return to a fuller theatrical slate.
Marvel has also turned late July into one of its strongest launch windows. Deadpool and Wolverine opened in that same stretch of the calendar in 2024, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day followed in a similar summer slot, both to major box office success. Placing Ghost Rider there signals the studio’s confidence in the project.
For audiences in the UAE, the film is expected to reach local cinemas around the same time as the global rollout, as is typical for Marvel Studios releases. A confirmed local release date usually arrives closer to the film’s opening.
Ghost Rider still sits some time away, with production yet to begin and plot details under wraps. What is settled is the shape of it: a long-awaited star in a role he chased for years, a proven blockbuster director, and a summer 2028 date on one of the biggest calendars in film.
