Ryan Gosling's MCU Ghost Rider Casting Was Manifested By The Internet

Published Jul 26, 2026, 8:00 AM EDT The Marvel Cinematic Universe has a new Ghost Rider, and the internet played an important role in getting Ryan Gosling cast as the character. It was announced on Satueday that Gosling will lead a Ghost Rider movie coming out in 2028 that Deadpool & Wolverine’s Shawn Levy will direct. This casting decision comes years after many fans on the internet championed for the Barbie actor to play the Johnny Blaze version of the character. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has confirmed that this enthusiasm online paved the way for Gosling being selected to play Ghost Rider. In an interview with ScreenRant's Ash Crossan after Marvel Studios’ Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con, Feige recalled that the Gosing as Ghost Rider fan castings resulted in many people asking him and other members of Marvel Studios’ brass about the possibility. That in turn led to meetings with Gosling, which eventually bore fruit after several years. In the executive’s words: It was when the internet was doing its thing and talking about who a great Ghost Rider would be and that happens a lot. What doesn't happen is that actually being asked by everybody, which led to a number of meetings over the years, and he [Ryan] was very busy. And, now is the time. It was a dream come true. Ryan came to show him the idea, and then came to us with the idea, and it's great. While Ghost Rider is Gosling’s first superhero movie, he’s no stranger to cinematic action. That portion of his resume includes The Nice Guys, Blade Runner 2049, The Gray Man, and The Fall Guy. The actor was most recently seen in the film adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel Project Hail Mary, which opened in theaters at the end of March. Along with making his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in Ghost Rider, Gosling will also star in Star Wars: Starfighter, which Levy also directed. It hasn’t been revealed yet if Gosling will indeed play Johnny Blaze or his successor, Danny Ketch, instead. However, he’ll be the second Ghost Rider to be prominently featured in the MCU, as Gabriel Luna played Robbie Reyes in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 4. That series also depicted Johnny passing the Spirit of Vengeance to Robbie, although it’s possible this could be retconned for the upcoming Marvel movie. Before Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Nicolas Cage played Johnny in 2007’s Ghost Rider and 2012’s Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Ghost Rider is one of two MCU movies officially scheduled for post-Avengers: Secret Wars, which concludes the franchise’s Multiverse Saga. Black Panther III is also scheduled for December 15, 2028, and will see T’Challa II, now played as an adult by David Jonsson, inheriting the Black Panther mantle. Other Marvel movies in various stages of development include Nova, Shang-Chi 2, and an X-Men reboot. Since Marvel Studios has May 5, 2028, and July 28, 2028, blocked off, assuming there aren’t any delays, Ghost Rider will occupy one of those slots. Before Gosling's MCU debut, watch him adventuring in a galaxy far, far away when Star Wars: Starfighter comes out on May 28, 2027. Video Game(s) Ghost Rider First Film Ghost Rider Cast Nicolas Cage, Eva Mendes, Wes Bentley, Sam Elliott, Ciarán Hinds, Idris Elba, Gabriel Luna, Peter Fonda, Violante Placido Created by Roy Thomas, Gary Friedrich, Mike Ploog Latest Film Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance Movie(s) Ghost Rider, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance