Warning! This Article Contains Spoilers for Daredevil: Born Again!
the MCU timeline, expectations have been high for Daredevil and his related cast to officially reprise their roles in the MCU. Daredevil: Born Again does just that, re-introducing some long-awaited familiar faces.
At first, it wasn't clear if the appearances of Kingpin and Daredevil were meant to simply pay homage to the Netflix continuity with the same actors, or if Vincent D'Onofrio and Charlie Cox were indeed playing the same exact characters from the previous series. However, the events of the Netflix shows are now canon to the MCU, and in the wake of Daredevil: Born Again's dramatic creative overhaul, more familiar faces have returned.
Matt Murdock / Daredevil
Charlie Cox
It goes without saying that Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock, a.k.a. Daredevil is the star of the show, once again reprising his beloved performance of the blind crime-fighting lawyer. The British actor was the second to portray Matt Murdock in live action, following the poorly-received Daredevil starring Ben Affleck in 2003. Thanks to Cox's charisma, impressive physicality, and ability to weather the storms of Murdock's fractured psyche, he quickly became a fan-favorite superhero actor. Charlie Cox's accurate depiction of blindness also earned him much-deserved kudos.
Daredevil: Born Again Show Cast & Marvel Character Guide
After cameo appearances in a selection of Phase 4 projects, Daredevil: Born Again will finally make Matt Murdock a main character in the MCU.
Last Seen in Echo
Cox first returned to the character in a brief cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home, where he catches an errant brick thrown through Peter Parker's window after giving him legal advice in the wake of his secret identity leaking to the public. Daredevil then got a more extended cameo in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, making the trip to Los Angeles while wearing his yellow suit and establishing a romantic relationship with his fellow lawyer moonlighting as a superhero. Echo also gave Daredevil another brief MCU appearance during an intense fight scene with Maya Lopez.
Matt Murdock / Daredevil in Daredevil: Born Again
Daredevil: Born Again begins with Matt Murdock, Karen Page, and Foggy Nelson successfully running the law firm of Nelson, Murdock, and Page, but their happiness is quickly shattered when Bullseye kills Foggy. During their fight, Daredevil attempts to kill Bullseye by throwing him off the roof, but he survives. The series picks up one year later after Matt Murdock has given up being Daredevil and has launched a new practice with Kirsten McDuffie.
Wilson Fisk / Kingpin
Vincent D'Onofrio
If it wasn't for Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin, it's hard to say if the Netflix continuity would have ever made it into the Marvel Cinematic Universe proper. Daredevil's archnemesis in the comics, movies, and TV shows, the man known as Kingpin, is an imposing crime lord who leverages power both clean and dirty in order to fulfill his goal of maintaining a vice grip on the city. Throughout their conflict in the Netflix universe, Daredevil and Kingpin's relationship has gone from being the impersonal opposite sides of moral and legal battles to bitter enemies for very personal reasons.
Last Seen in Echo
The events of Hawkeye saw Kingpin taking up arms against Kate Bishop and her mother, engaging directly in a one-on-one fight against the former after escaping from prison during the Blip. From there, he ends up squaring off against his old confidant and minion, Maya Lopez, after she becomes the hero Echo. Using her new powers, Maya forced Fisk to re-live his deepest, darkest traumas, leaving him emotionally shattered. Fisk ends Echo by finding a way to grasp legal power in the New York City mayoral race, which a convenient news broadcast tells him has no clear frontrunner.
Wilson Fisk / Kingpin in Daredevil: Born Again
Wilson Fisk's story in Daredevil: Born Again continues from where it left off in Echo. He had been away for a long time, which forced his wife, Vanessa, to step in and lead his criminal empire. He officially decides to run for mayor (and wins), promising to fix New York City, with one of his biggest talking points involving getting rid of vigilantes altogether, like Spider-Man, White Tiger, and Daredevil.
Karen Page
Deborah Ann Woll
Daredevil's original love interest and trusted confidant in the original Netflix Daredevil series, Karen Page, is the focal point around which Foggy and Matt's new law firm solidifies early on in the show. This professional and personal bond eventually boils over into a sort of love triangle between the three, with both Foggy and Matt vying for Karen's affections at different points. Karen works as Foggy and Matt's office manager, eventually even putting in some work in the courtroom herself, defending Frank Castle. Karen is the survivor of multiple harrowing kidnapping attempts by Daredevil's many villains.
Last Seen in Netflix's Daredevil
Karen was last seen going into business with her two best friends at the end of Daredevil season 3, as the trio formed the law firm Nelson, Murdock and Page, having been through multiple attempts on her life. It was a happy ending for the trio, with the promise that great things were to come for them.
Karen Page and Foggy Nelson were not going to originally be in Daredevil: Born Again, but were eventually included after the series became a continuation of the original show.
Karen Page in Daredevil: Born Again
Daredevil: Born Again kicks off with Karen hanging out with Matt and Foggy at Josie's after a long day of work, and there is some flirting between her and Matt, indicating there might be something more to them once again beyond just friends. After Foggy is killed, though, it is revealed that Karen has left New York City and moved to San Francisco following a falling out with Matt in the wake of the tragedy.
Foggy Nelson
Elden Henson
Matt Murdock's best friend and the "Nelson" in Nelson, Murdock and Page, Foggy Nelson is a civilian character that has been important to Daredevil's growth in the original series. Initially unaware of his best friend's powers and vigilante activities, Foggy eventually becomes wise to the danger Matt puts himself and his loved ones in, resulting in a huge schism in their relationship. Foggy's wisecracking jokes and occasional whiny complaints sometimes irritated certain Daredevil viewers, but he serves as a great perspective character looking at Matt Murdock's life from the outside.
Last Seen in Netflix's Daredevil
Like Karen, Foggy enjoyed a relatively happy ending in Netflix's Daredevil, going into business with his two best friends as a new law firm at the end of season 3. Given how much Foggy, Karen, and Matt had been through over the course of the original series, it was a triumphant end for them.
Foggy Nelson in Daredevil: Born Again
When Foggy, Matt and Karen go out for some drinks, Matt and Karen discover that Foggy has hidden a client in his apartment, and is being targeted by someone. When Matt goes to investigate it as Daredevil, it is revealed to be a trick by Bullseye, and he shoots Foggy through the chest, which eventually kills him as Bullseye fights Daredevil. It's a tragic end to Foggy's story that is the catalyst for Matt Murdock's decision to step away from being Daredevil.
Frank Castle / The Punisher
Jon Bernthal
As if Charlie Cox's Daredevil and Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin weren't already two incredible comic book character performances to come out of Netflix's Daredevil, the series also introduced Jon Bernthal's Punisher. A former soldier whose family was murdered in a brutal shooting orchestrated by criminals in Central Park, Frank Castle became a murderous vigilante bent on purging the streets of New York City. Donning the classic white skull, Frank Castle became The Punisher and had several encounters with Daredevil as an enemy and ally.
Last Seen in Netflix's The Punisher
Starring in his own spin-off series, The Punisher, Frank Castle ended his solo show embracing his new identity as The Punisher, recognizing that he was no longer just trying to avenge his family. Rejecting an offer from the CIA to work for the government, The Punisher seems to have gone completely off the rails, killing criminals in New York.
Frank Castle / The Punisher in Daredevil: Born Again
Though Frank Castle isn't seen at the beginning of Daredevil: Born Again, he is directly mentioned by Wilson Fisk, who promises to stop vigilantism in New York City after being elected Mayor. The series looks to be setting up a significant storyline with Frank Castle about how some NYPD officers have appropriated his symbol like in the comics, and Frank does not like that. A corrupt cop attempting to kill Hector Ayala's witness is revealed to have a Punisher tattoo on his arm.
Benjamin Poindexter / Bullseye
Wilson Bethel
Despite being such a ubiquitous Daredevil villain from the comics, the villain known as Bullseye doesn't appear until the very last season of Netflix's Daredevil, and even then, he doesn't take up the true mantle of the name until the very end. Benjamin Poindexter worked for Kingpin, impersonating Daredevil for a time, besmirching the hero's good name by committing a series of murders in his costume.
Daredevil: Born Again Full Season 1 Review - I Refuse To Say "Marvel Is Back" Because I'm Not Sure It's Ever Been This Good
7 years after Daredevil's last season on Netflix, Charlie Cox's masked vigilante is back and better than ever in the MCU.
Last Seen in Netflix's Daredevil
Benjamin Pondexter's story in the third season of Daredevil promised more to come for the character. After threatening Vanessa, Poindexter was rewarded with a shattered spine that left him up for an experimental procedure that laced his bones with steel and seemingly enhanced his vision. He opens his eyes and a Bullseye symbol is seen, hinting at him officially becoming the iconic Daredevil villain.
Benjamin Poindexter / Bullseye in Daredevil: Born Again
Benjamin Poindexter as Bullseye is a significant threat immediately at the start of Daredevil: Born Again, killing Foggy Nelson and getting into a brutal fight with Daredevil, where he continues to kill a total of 11 people throughout it. He ends up living after being thrown off a roof by Daredevil, and is eventually sentenced to life in prison without parole for each of the 11 counts of murder.
Vanessa Fisk
Ayelet Zurer
Vanessa can claim to be one of the few characters in the Daredevil series to exert some level of power over Wilson Fisk, opening up his vulnerable side with her gentle touch. Vanessa's safety and approval was a driving force for Kingpin earlier in the show, and she ended the third season getting married to the crime lord, only for their wedding to end in disaster. Strangely, Vanessa wasn't mentioned by Fisk in any of his subsequent MCU appearances in Hawkeye or Echo, despite her importance to the narrative.
Last Seen in Netflix's Daredevil
Despite being complicit in Wilson Fisk's crimes, Matt Murdock decides not to go after Vanessa for her involvement, keeping her free to use as not only leverage but also protection from Wilson Fisk so that he wouldn't go after Foggy, Karen, or anyone else. Vanessa and Wilson Fisk were forcibly separated by the end of the series.
Vanessa Fisk in Daredevil: Born Again
Daredevil: Born Again kicks off with Vanessa Fisk running Wilson's criminal empire since he had been away. In his absence, the business has thrived, with Vanessa building a trusting and firm relationship with the various gangs working under her. Once Wilson Fisk returns, there is tension between him and Vanessa and, the two eventually go to marriage counseling following Wilson Fisk getting elected as Mayor.
Daredevil: Born Again
- Release Date
- March 4, 2025
- Network
- Disney+
- Showrunner
- Chris Ord
Cast
Matt Murdock / Daredevil
Wilson Fisk
WHERE TO WATCH
- Directors
- Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson, David Boyd, Jeffrey Nachmanoff
- Writers
- Jesse Wigutow, Jill Blankenship, Thomas Wong, David Feige, Grainne Godfree
- Franchise(s)
- Daredevil, Marvel Cinematic Universe
- Main Genre
- Adventure
- Number of Episodes
- 9
- Seasons
- 1
- Story By
- chris ord
- Streaming Service(s)
- Disney+
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