Abraham Whistler

Abraham Whistler is a fictional character appearing in the Blade film and television series. Developing the 1998 film Blade, screenwriter David S. Goyer created the character, and named him after Abraham van Helsing, the nemesis of Count Dracula from Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897). Whistler is a vampire hunter and Blade's mentor. Whistler is an original character created by Goyer, although some comparisons have been made to Jamal Afari who appeared in the comics as Blade's mentor. Kris Kristofferson was cast in the role and later reprised his role in Blade II (2002) and Blade: Trinity (2004). Ahead of Kristofferson's casting and the film's release, Whistler first appeared onscreen in Spider-Man: The Animated Series in 1995, adapted from Goyer's then-unfilmed screenplay, where he was originally voiced by Malcolm McDowell and later by Oliver Muirhead. In Blade: The Series (2006) a young Whistler was played by Adrian Glynn McMorran. Development In the Marvel Comics created by Chris Claremont and Tony DeZuniga Blade had a mentor, a jazz musician called Jamal Afari. Developing the 1998 film Blade, screenwriter David S. Goyer wanted Blade to have a mentor and thought of the archetype of "The aging gunfighter who passes down his knowledge. It's the John Wayne character." Marvel liked the Whistler character and before the film had even been made they used him when Blade made a guest appearance in "Spider-Man series. This resulted in a legal dispute as New Line insisted that Marvel did not own the character created by Goyer. Director Stephen Norrington's first choice to play Whistler was Patrick McGoohan as he was a fan of The Prisoner (1967). Jon Voight was also considered for the role. The casting supervisor suggested Kris Kristofferson and Goyer had been impressed by Kristofferson's work in the 1996 film Lone Star and he ultimately won the role. Kristofferson has been quoted as saying that beyond the role of mentor, Whistler also serves as a father figure for Blade, citing that his own experience of having eight children helped him prepare for the role immensely.