Ryan Gosling now knows exactly when he will ride into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Disney has scheduled Marvel Studios’ Ghost Rider for July 28, 2028, giving the supernatural superhero movie an exact theatrical date after Marvel initially announced only a 2028 release window. Just Jared reported the new date after Disney updated its upcoming theatrical calendar.
Gosling was officially unveiled as the star of Ghost Rider during Marvel’s San Diego Comic-Con presentation in July. Shawn Levy, who directed Deadpool & Wolverine, will direct, while Jonathan Tropper is writing the screenplay.
The July date also fills in another piece of Marvel’s 2028 strategy. Ghost Rider is currently positioned between X-Men in May and Black Panther 3 in December, giving Marvel three major theatrical releases spread across the year.
‘Ghost Rider’ Will Hit Theaters on July 28, 2028
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The July 28 date places Gosling’s movie squarely in the summer blockbuster corridor and makes it the middle entry in Marvel’s currently announced 2028 theatrical slate. The Los Angeles Times confirmed that Levy is directing from Tropper’s script and noted that the same trio already has another major Disney franchise project together.
Levy, Gosling and Tropper also collaborated on Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: Starfighter, which is scheduled to reach theaters on May 28, 2027. Gosling plays Kade Auberon, a mysterious starfighter pilot described as coming from “the wrong side of the galaxy.”
The new Ghost Rider date is more specific than Marvel’s original Comic-Con announcement. Marvel’s official Comic-Con recap confirms that the studio has begun work on the film, with Gosling starring, Levy directing and Tropper writing.
However, the Walt Disney Company’s official recap said only that the movie would arrive sometime in 2028. Less than a month later, July 28 is now locked in on Disney’s theatrical calendar.
Gosling Had Wanted to Play Ghost Rider for Years
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His interest in the Spirit of Vengeance goes back years. In 2022, Gosling publicly identified Ghost Rider as the Marvel character he most wanted to play, prompting Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige to say he would “love to find a place” for the actor in the MCU.
The idea continued following Gosling. By March 2026, while promoting Project Hail Mary, he acknowledged that discussions with Marvel about Ghost Rider had actually taken place, though he described the situation at that stage as complicated.
Four months later, the speculation became official. Marvel brought Gosling onto the Hall H stage at San Diego Comic-Con, where he acknowledged just how long he had been waiting for the opportunity. “As you know, this is a character I’ve wanted to play for a long time,” Gosling told the crowd.
Levy joined him onstage and described how their collaboration on Starfighter helped lead to another project together. The director recalled Gosling beginning to talk about Ghost Rider and said his reaction was essentially, “Bro, let’s ride.”
Trade Reports Identify Gosling’s Ghost Rider as Johnny Blaze
Disney and Marvel’s official Comic-Con recaps refer to Gosling simply as the star of Ghost Rider and do not identify which incarnation of the character he plays.
However, major Hollywood trade publications including The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline reported when the casting was announced that Gosling will play Johnny Blaze.
Blaze is the motorcycle stuntman most closely associated with the Ghost Rider identity and the version Nicolas Cage played in the 2007 Ghost Rider movie and its 2012 sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.
Marvel comics have featured several Ghost Riders over the years, including Danny Ketch and Robbie Reyes. Gabriel Luna previously played Reyes in Marvel Television’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Marvel Now Has Three Movies Lined Up for 2028
Ghost Rider will arrive after Marvel’s new X-Men movie, which is currently dated for May 5, 2028. Disney used its D23 presentation in August to reveal more of that film’s cast. Sadie Sink is playing Jean Grey, Kit Connor is Cyclops, Christopher Abbott is Charles Xavier, Samara Weaving is Emma Frost, Inde Navarrette is Rogue and Maya Boyd is Storm.
Adam Driver was announced as Nathaniel Milbury, better known as Mister Sinister, while Jake Schreier is directing. The May release makes X-Men the first of Marvel’s three currently dated movies that year, followed by Ghost Rider on July 28. Then comes Black Panther 3 on Dec. 15.
Ryan Coogler is returning to direct the third Black Panther film, with Letitia Wright and Winston Duke also returning. At Comic-Con, Coogler introduced David Jonsson as the new Black Panther.
Those three movies offer the clearest look yet at Marvel’s theatrical strategy after Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars conclude the current multiverse-centered era. Doomsday is scheduled for Dec. 18, 2026, followed by Secret Wars on Dec. 17, 2027.