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To many horror movie fans (yours truly included), Wesley Snipes's Blade is the very definition of cool. However, there's an understandable, not at all contradictory case to be made that the character is also a full-on weirdo. He's a half-vampire that hunts other vampires, after all - how strange is that? Well apparently, it's that strangeness that made future Oscar-winner Guillermo del Toro sign on with Fox to make the second Blade movie.

Del Toro spoke about his decision over 20 years ago, at a recently-unearthed Toronto International Film Festival panel. Asked about what kind of stories drew him into making films, the director bluntly explained a concept that has was true of his movies then, and is true of his movies now.

"I have [...] no patience for winners," said the then-future Hellboy and Hellboy 2 director, "I hate winners. On Blade 2, I made the decision of accepting that story because Blade is himself a freak. He's a guy that lives in the dark, he injects a serum, he lives in abandoned warehouses. He's not Superman with the fucking flashy smile and the bright colored uniform that is in favor of everything good and apple pie."

Blade II was released in 2002, a time in which comic book movies did indeed lean more toward "freaks" than they did "winners." These were the days of the leather-clad X-Men, the cross-clinging Daredevil, and not long after, the Nic Cage'd Ghost Rider. Even Spider-Man, released the same year as the Wesley Snipes vampire sequel, was directed by Sam Raimi, and featured an awkward, less-than-polished Peter Parker and an absolute nightmare jester in Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin. 

I'm just saying, I for one am fully in support of taking inspiration from that time period in approaching comic book movies forward. If nothing else, for the fact that a certain Oscar winner might be willing to join up in making them. 

In the immortal words of Danny Elfman, "Life's no fun without a good scare." We couldn't agree more, which is why we've cobbled together a couple pieces to send a chill up your spine. Join Popverse as we explore:

• The best horror movies of all time, according to horror aficionado Greg Silber
• The most underrated horror movies from the past couple years
• All the new and upcoming horror movies for 2025 and beyond

And much gore. Er, more. Much more.