Ryan Gosling’s ‘Ghost Rider’ has officially locked in July 28, 2028, putting the film in an increasingly packed Marvel calendar alongside ‘X-Men’ and ‘Black Panther 3’. But the real shock isn’t the date, it’s what Marvel is betting on by putting Gosling behind the Spirit of Vengeance.

Gosling’s casting was announced at Comic-Con, instantly turning one of Marvel’s darker characters into one of its most talked-about projects.

He will take over the role previously played by Nicolas Cage in Sony’s two ‘Ghost Rider’ films, while ‘Deadpool’ & ‘Wolverine’ director Shawn Levy is attached to direct and ‘Starfighter’ writer Jonathan Tropper is penning the screenplay.

And here’s where things get interesting: Marvel is placing ‘Ghost Rider’ between the untitled ‘X-Men’ movie on May 5, 2028, and ‘Black Panther 3’ on December 15. That makes 2028 look like a full-scale Marvel takeover.

Could ‘Ghost Rider’ become Marvel’s next major franchise or is the studio once again betting on star power to revive a character audiences have already seen before?

Also Read: Is Marvel already planning to replace Tom Holland's Spider-Man?

The stakes are even higher because Gosling isn’t exactly an obvious superhero casting choice. His move from acclaimed dramas and action films into a flaming-skulled, supernatural Marvel role could either become inspired casting or one of the studio’s riskiest experiments.

Also Read: Ryan Reynolds crashes comic-con as Deadpool, was he secretly teasing an ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ role?

Meanwhile, Disney is stacking 2028 with major releases, including Pixar’s ‘Ghost Market’ and a live-action ‘Tangled’. With ‘X-Men’, ‘Ghost Rider’ and ‘Black Panther 3’ all arriving within months of each other, Marvel may be preparing its biggest cinematic comeback yet.

But will audiences still want this much Marvel by 2028 or will Ghost Rider have to save the franchise itself?