With the arrival of The Fantastic Four, The Silver Surfer, Blade, and the X-Men, it feels like all of the major Marvel heroes will be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Yet, one character that many fans have been hoping to see that Marvel has been relatively quiet about is Ghost Rider. While the Ghost Rider persona is most commonly associated with Johnny Blaze, who Nicolas Cage played in the 2007 film Ghost Rider and its 2012 sequel Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, others in the comics have taken up the mantle, including Robbie Reyes, who Gabriel Luna played in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
In an interview with Collider‘s Perri Nemiroff, Marvel Studios’ Head of Streaming, Television, and Animation, Brad Winderbaum, was asked if he could snap his fingers and make a television series based on any character . He said Ghost Rider. Yet notably, he did not say Johnny Blaze or Robbie Reyes but instead highlighted Daniel Ketch. Daniel “Danny” Ketch debuted Ghost Rider vol. 3 #1 in May 1990, created by writer Howard Mackie and artist Javier Saltares. This version of Ghost Rider is notable for introducing the black leather biker jacket with spiked shoulder pads and the mystical fire chain worn across his chest, which has since been brought into other versions as Ghost Rider’s signature look. Winderbaum said:
“I would wanna do the Danny Ketch era of Ghost Rider. I think there are a lot of people who would be here for some Ghost Rider.”
Ghost Rider in the MCU
While Johnny Blaze and Robbie Reyes might have gotten the most attention in recent years, the Danny Ketch version of Ghost Rider has appeared in a few adaptations that many fans might not have realized. Since he debuted in the early 1990s and was the Ghost Rider in the comics at the time, it is the Danny Ketch version of Ghost Rider that appeared in the animated series Fantastic Four and The Incredible Hulk, voiced by 21 Jump Street star Richard Grieco. A version of Danny also appears in Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengence, played by Fergus Riordan. In the film, Nicolas Cage’s Johnny Blaze needs to protect a child, Danny Ketch, from the monstrous forces of hell as he is the son of the Devil and could be the conduit for him to walk the Earth. This was a dramatic reimaging of Danny Ketch, and it was less about laying the groundwork for a future Ghost Rider movie where Danny would become the Spirit of Vengence and was more of a reference to Ghost Rider mythology.
Ghost Rider’s status in the MCU is in a state of limbo. While Gabriel Luna played Robbie Reyes in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and the series also confirmed Johnny Blaze existed, that canon status within the larger MCU is unclear. In May 2019, it was announced that Luna was set to star in his own Ghost Rider series for Hulu, but plans for the series were canceled in September 2019. This was around the same time that Marvel Television came under the supervision of Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, and they started developing Marvel series for Disney+ that would connect to the movies.
Since then, rumors have been circulating about a Ghost Rider television series. In 2021, Marvel Studios created Richmond Street Productions LLC, as Richmond Street is located close to Cypress Hill Cemetery, a key location in Danny Ketch’s Ghost Rider story. Rumors have circulated that Ryan Gosling is being considered to play Ghost Rider, with the actor himself saying he would like to play the character. While many fans assumed the Ghost Rider role that Gosling would play in the MCU if he joined was Johnny Blaze, Marvel Studios might be setting up Danny Ketch instead. Projects like Werewolf by Night, Agatha All Along, and the upcoming Blade seem to tease a supernatural team-up, and that would not be complete without Ghost Rider, so the character might be joining the MCU sooner rather than later.