Let's face it: we all have sleepless nights, and most of the time, it's about work. Playing iconic Marvel vampire slayer Blade might just happen to be one of the coolest jobs in the world, but it's still something that comes with a huge weight of expectation — and way more than with most other big-screen parts. Fans expect a lot out of the performers behind their favorite characters, after all. It turns out that this huge weight of expectation — plus, well, the pressure to get it right — was enough to keep up Mahershala Ali.

Speaking on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Ali opened by talking about that weight of expectation surrounding his brief cameo in Eternals, which he hadn't experienced prior to joining the MCU:

"I’ve never walked into a world where the anticipation is so great. Where people are so familiar with the character, have such strong points of view, and all that. There’s clearly an added layer of pressure which… I will embrace."

Of course he'll embrace it — he's one of the world's greatest actors, after all, and has already won two Oscars at the age of 47. Heck, he's already worked on a Marvel property, playing the nefarious Cottonmouth in the TV show Luke Cage. But the stress of getting something exactly right, the exacting mentality that has no doubt made him the generational talent he is today, doesn't ever subsist. In the last post-credits scene of Marvel's latest film, Eternals, it was confirmed officially that he would be playing the iconic character, albeit we just heard his voice. And getting the voice right... sounds like it was a lot of stress.

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Image via Netflix

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"You lose a lot of sleep over it. I was losing sleep over this line because ideally, you know, you want to be talking once you are filming," Ali said. "100% of the time, my first day on any set, on any job, I hate it - I hate how I sound, I don’t believe myself, y’know. So you’re trying to get comfortable in the character, so having to talk without filming was challenging. But I’m grateful for it, because it made it feel real. It’s like, okay, now we’re going."

It's both revealing and a testament to Ali's character that he would invest so much of himself in his craft. Hopefully, when he's actually on the Blade set, those sleepless nights get a little easier.

Blade does not yet have a release date. It is also set to feature Delroy Lindo, with Bassam Tariq directing. You can watch Ali's full interview with Colbert below: