Ghost Rider 3 with Nicholas Cage is Not Happening Ever

The post contains spoilers for Ghost Rider and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.

By Lois Robinett On Jul 23, 2022

Nicholas Cage’s Ghost Rider was funny. A PG-13 movie with a demon with a flaming skull is rare but inappropriate. The film sold enough tickets to spawn a sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. That movie bombed at the box office.

So, a question ponders over for fans who like the second movie. When will Ghost Rider 3 release?

Here, in brief, I will encapsulate the Ghost Rider, the character’s film adaptions, and why a third iteration is unlikely.

Ghost Rider is a comic book character with horror roots

Marvel is a well-known entity now. Back in 1939, Marvel was started by Martin Goodman as Timely Comics. Marvel solidified its position in superhero comics with the launch of The Fantastic Four in 1961 with Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Steve Ditko on board.

Ghost Rider first appeared in Marvel Spotlight No. 5 in the August 1972 issue. Throughout the Ghost Rider history in comics, various individuals have held the mantle.

Johnny Blaze is the first Ghost Rider. He agreed with Mephisto to hive his “Soul” to him in exchange for his father’s life.

The deal with Mephisto gave blaze cursed powers. He is devoured by Hellfire at night and transforms into a flaming skull. In the later part of his comic solo series, which ran from 1972 to 1983, he learns that he has bonded with Demon Zarathos. That’s enough history today!

At the time of writing this article, Roberto “Robbie” Reyes holds the mantle of Ghost Rider. Much younger than Blaze, he is still trying to understand the dark power.

The Ghost Rider Movies

The first live-action adaption of Ghost Rider came out in 2007. The film was a big-budget, PG-13 adventure about a character who changes into a demon with a flaming head.

Aside from the horrible wig, Cage garnered positive reviews for his starring performance, but the script, lame villain, and lousy CGI caused Ghost Rider to be widely derided. Thus an R-rating would have been more appropriate.

It was difficult to transfer such a unique persona from the page to the screen. Nicolas Cage could not physically play Ghost Rider during the parts in which he is a flaming skull. No safety apparatus allows an actor’s head to be set on flame.

CGI was the only option, but then it wouldn’t quite be Cage anymore.

To get around the problem, the production melded the two. Special sensors were put around the actor’s head to get a 3-dimensional x-ray of it, from which Ghost Rider’s skull was created.

The process required Cage to lay still for a couple of hours so the scan could be complete. While that may have been somewhat arduous, he was pleased with the result, as it put a substantial piece of him into the CGI creations.

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Ghost Rider was a financial success, so a sequel was greenlit. There were early signs that Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance would be an improvement on the maligned original.

Crank co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor were bought to helm the film. It was said to be a soft reboot, and the supporting cast included the future superstar Idris Elba.

While Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance was better and contained a couple of fun action scenes, it was still a mediocre comic book movie.

Sony had previously acquired the character’s film rights from Marvel. Following the success of the first picture, there was little doubt that a sequel would be made. That didn’t happen straight away for a variety of reasons, including Nicolas Cage’s hectic schedule.

Sony found itself in a situation where it needed to get a film into production swiftly or risk losing the Marvel licensing arrangement.

Rushing the movie into production meant that the time and care weren’t put into getting the story just right.

Following its screening, Sony executives knew they had a big problem on their hands. The crowd absolutely hated it. Social media lit up with negative reactions from both professional critics and average movie buffs in attendance.

That disastrous beginning gave the first indication of what a bomb the sequel would turn out to be.

Ghost Rider 3 Release Date: Nicolas Cage will not return

According to trendingnewsbuzz, The first Ghost Rider movie came out in 2007. The second one, called Spirit of Vengeance, came out in 2012. Based on past patterns, we should have gotten another movie in 2017, but that did not happen, and it looks like Ghost Rider 3 will never come out.

Ghost Rider 3 was scrapped after the mediocre reception of Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance and Nic Cage’s evident disdain in returning.

The character’s rights were returned to Marvel in 2013, when Ghost Rider, in the form of Robbie Reyes (Gabriel Luna), featured on Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. during season 4.

Marvel also appears to have little interest in filming a Ghost Rider film, and even if they did, it’s quite doubtful that the Nic Cage era would be revived.

Not only has Cage ruled out a return, but the Ghost Rider flicks have a poor reputation among fans.

An R-rated Ghost Rider 3 starring Nic Cage sounds like a blast, but it feels like the previous film arrived too soon, with the PG-13 rating diluting his appeal.

There is a chance the character will be redeemed on the big screen in the future,but not in Ghost Rider 3.

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