The History of Ghost Rider (2007) Ghost Rider (2007), directed by Mark Steven Johnson, was produced by Columbia Pictures and based on Marvel Comics’ supernatural antihero Johnny Blaze. Nicolas Cage was cast after years of expressed interest in the character, driven largely by his lifelong enthusiasm for comic books. Cage is a documented comic book collector and fan, particularly of darker Marvel characters. His interest in Ghost Rider dates back to the early 2000s, when the project went through