In 2007, Sony released the Nic Cage superhero flick Ghost Rider, which was both spooky and
cheesy in equal measure, and in 2012, it got a sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.
But since the rights to Ghost Rider have reverted to Marvel, there's been no sign of a third
movie ever happening.
Here's why Marvel won't give Ghost Rider another movie.
Box office meh
While the first Ghost Rider film earned a decent $228 million worldwide, the second
only managed $132 million, which is less than Tony Stark carries in his wallet for petty
cash.
"Ya, big man in a suit of armor.
Take that off what are you?"
"Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist."
Considering both films were also lambasted by movie critics, there's not much reason
for Marvel to put out another Ghost Rider film when they have proven properties like
Captain America and Spider-man to focus on instead, not to mention new franchises like
Captain Marvel and Black Panther.
Nic Cage isn't interested
Even if the stars somehow aligned and Marvel did decide to tackle a third Ghost Rider film
with Cage, the actor has indicated he's not really all that keen to climb back on the
motorcycle, given the chance.
As he told Collider,
"I've said what I have to say.
I don't want to say never…anything's possible.
But I doubt, highly, that I would be in a third installment of that."
We're guessing most fans aren't exactly disappointed with that news.
Television
Though he's not on the big screen anymore, there are still some Ghost Rider stories being
told in live action—they're just happening on Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. series.
"You don't get to decide who deserves to die."
"I'm not the one who decides."
The newest Ghost Rider, Robbie Reyes, is played by Gabriel Luna and has quickly become a fan
favorite.
Though ratings are down, the introduction of Ghost Rider has revitalized the show, providing
a connection to the mystical side of the MCU opened up by the big-screen hit Doctor Strange.
Team-up, anyone?
Marvel's great divide
Fans hoping that Robbie Reyes' appearance in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. might be planting
the seeds for the newest Ghost Rider to jump on to the big screen are probably going to
be disappointed.
"Claims he made a deal with the devil."
"Which is nonsense."
"Ya know the rationalist in me wants to agree but, the skull on fire presents a pretty compelling
argument for hail Satan."
So far, the events in the movies have had only a minor effect on the television series,
while the stuff on the TV shows hasn't even been mentioned in the movies.
"I guess you guys haven't heard about me."
This is probably because of a long-running power struggle between movie studio head Kevin
Feige and Marvel president Ike Perlmutter, who is still in charge of the TV shows.
As long as there continues to be backstage drama between the two, Ghost Rider is probably
stuck where he is: on television, and not in the movies.
Johnny Blaze is old news
The version of Ghost Rider that Nic Cage played, Johnny Blaze, seems to just be part of the
current Ghost Rider's backstory in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Though Cage himself didn't appear on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the origin story for Robbie
Reyes involved Robbie making a deal with the devil in order to save his brother's life.
"And you're right, there was someone there when I came to.
But it wasn't a good samaritan...it was the devil."
Add in the fact that the show also teased Quentin Carnival, the carnival that Jonny
Blaze works for, and it seems as though Johnny's story is just prologue in the MCU.
Of course, Marvel could always do a prequel series about Johnny's time as Ghost Rider,
but we sort of already have that in the form of Sony's two films.
No more crap
The first Ghost Rider movie hit just before the comic book movie creative renaissance
of the Marvel Cinematic Universe—back when studios could still get away with releasing
mediocre comic book adaptations.
In terms of quality and tone, the Ghost Rider films have far more in common with last-generation
superhero movies like Daredevil and Fantastic Four than they do with modern films like Iron
Man or The Dark Knight.
Given the poor reputation the Ghost Rider films have, it's unlikely Marvel would risk
tainting their perfect record at the box office with a franchise that carries so much baggage.
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