©Courtesy of Disney+
Much like the complex protagonists they’re glorifying on screen, comic book adaptations are determinedly fighting to remain significant in the public gaze in recent years. With public interest in such adaptations wavering latey, Marvel Studios is revamping the MCU with the reintroduction of one of its most popular superheros, Daredevil. The titular masked vigilante will grace television screens once again in the upcoming Disney+ series, Daredevil: Born Again.
The show is promising to change the image of superheroes on screen by focusing more time on who Daredevil, his allies and his adversaries are as men, instead of their iconic public figures. Since 2021, the MCU has slowly been building towards the continuation of Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk in the upcoming drama. Following the shared universe’s definitive creative overhaul last year, Daredevil: Born Again is poised to become the darkest series produced by Marvel Studios, via its Marvel Television label, on Disney+.
Daredevil: Born Again will be the second television show based on the eponymous character. The upcoming drama follows Daredevil, which was produced by the previous Marvel Television production company and streamed on Netflix from 2015-2018.
The upcoming series won’t serve as an official fourth season of the Netflix show. But the Disney+ drama will continue the arcs of the returning characters from the previous screen adaptation now that The Defenders saga is canon to the larger MCU.
Dario Scardapane, Christopher Ord and Matthew Corman created Daredevil: Born Again for Disney+. Scardapane is also serving as the showrunner on the upcoming project. Frequent collaborators Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (Loki, Moon Knight) are serving as the series’ lead directors.
Daredevil: Born Again is set to follow Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox), a blind lawyer with heightened abilities who’s fighting for justice through his bustling law firm. Meanwhile, former mob boss Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) pursues his own political endeavors in New York City. When their past identities begin to emerge, both men – who are also known by their alias, Daredevil and Kingpin – find themselves on an inevitable collision course.
Cox and D’Onofrio, who are reprising their roles from Daredevil, generously took the time to talk about starring in Daredevil: Born Again at New York Comic Con. The convention was held at the Javits Center, which is located in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood. The two actors made a surprise appearance half-way through the convention’s Marvel Fanfare panel.
Daredevil: Born Again‘s first season will consist of nine episodes. The season is set to premiere on March 4, 2025 on Disney+.
©Courtesy of Disney+
Q&A with Actors Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio
Q: Gentlemen, welcome to New York Comic Con! How does it feel to be back in the suits on Daredevil: Born Again, as well as back here at the convention?
Charlie Cox: It’s so surreal. During our first appearance, we were so nervous. I remember when we first visited New York Comic Con in 2014, someone said, “Don’t pretend that you know all about the character because the fans will know more than you do!” I’m still pinching myself because I’m still so nervous.
Vincent D’Onofrio: We’re really proud of the show, and it’s coming back strong.
Q: Here we are, back at New York Comic Con, and New York is the location for Daredevil: Born Again. You filmed the show around the city, including here in Hell’s Kitchen, correct?
Charlie Cox: Yes. We didn’t show much of Hell’s Kitchen in the original show. Obviously, New York is one of the main characters in the show…and we have amazing, iconic locations.
Q: It’s been hinted that Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk go on new paths that are completely different than what we’ve seen before. Is there are anything you can discuss about the new iterations of your characters?
Vincent D’Onofrio: I think it’s cool that they are on different paths, but the way that they feel about each other is still very present. Their relationship is very tense. I tried to be nice, I really did! (Audience laughs.) There’s so much that I want to say, but there’s nothing really specific that I can say.
Charlie Cox: Another cool thing is that these characters recognize that their obsession with, and hatred towards, each other has caused more outward damage than good. So they have to find a way to reconcile their differences.
In a weird way, it takes us back to the drawing board. There’s an idea that they trust each other as long as one of them doesn’t cross a line. You can imagine how that goes. But it’s a good place to start this season.
Vincent D’Onofrio: These paths they’re on this season have to do with their personal lives, as well. (Wilson’s wife) Vanessa (played by Ayelet Zurer) gets to do some pretty great things this season. Ayelet is such a wonderful actress.
Q: Before the two of you got back together for this show, you made appearances on some other Marvel shows on Disney+. Charlie, you appeared on She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, and Vincent, you were on Echo. What was it like leaving the safety of Daredevil, and getting to work with other actors?
Vincent D’Onofrio: It was weird. (Audience laughs.) But it was also fun. Going into Hawkeye, I had to service a specific story, which is my job as an actor. So it was weird coming out of the darkness of the Netflix (Daredevil series) and then going into what can be considered at times a lighter approach. But I always stand by the fact that I’m always playing the same guy in different circumstances – that’s my job.
On Echo, we had an incredible lead actress in Alaqua Cox. My character was very intense on the show, and the two characters have a father-daughter-type relationship.
That was a darker, but more comfortable, place for my character. It’s what I always yearn to do with this character; to create this gritty, dark place for him. I think that’s where the shows work best. So they went in that direction with Echo, and it worked really well.
I think a lot of that influenced the way we approached making this new season of Daredevil. We were able to work in a dark place but still have fun and be creative in an exciting, cool way.
We finally figured out how to do this show. It’s so exciting to have finally been able to play these characters the way that Charlie and I wanted to. A lot of us who also worked on the first iteration of the show were yearning to find a better way to tell this story, and it worked out with this version. It’s been amazing to work with this series’ writers and directors.
Q: Charlie, you appeared in the yellow costume on She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. You have worn several different iterations of the suit in your portrayals of Daredevil, and on the upcoming season, you’re in the red suit. Were there any changes that you wanted to make and how you wanted to look?
Charlie Cox: I feel like the decisions about the costumes are made by people who are higher up than me. I just wanted to be comfortable!…The one we have on this show is a cool color of red, which was amazing.
Q: Charlie, there’s not much more that you can say, but is there anything else that you’d like to share?
Charlie Cox: Well, we can now premiere the new trailer for Daredevil: Born Again!
(After trailer plays:) Vincent D’Onofrio: I’m glad you liked that because there’s a lot more to come! (Audience claps.) The show is premiering on Disney+ on March 4, 2025!
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