After making his long-anticipated Marvel return in a major movie release and continuing that streak in a streaming series supporting role, Charlie Cox is once again gearing up as Matt Murdock and returning in a sequel series that continues the original Daredevil and takes place in the official MCU continuity.
Daredevil: Born Again is part of the MCU’s Phase Five. As its title suggests, this will be a reboot of Matt Murdock’s journey, though one that pits him against new adversaries. The original series came to an abrupt end in 2018 when Netflix canceled it after three seasons, but due to its overwhelming popularity and darker take on the Marvel universe, we knew it would only be a matter of time before Kevin Feige somehow incorporated Murdock back into his own grand plans for the interconnected narrative.
The fandom’s prayers were answered in Spider-Man: No Way Home, which briefly featured Murdock as Peter Parker’s lawyer. The character further appeared in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and got a complete makeover, albeit one that didn’t sit well with quite a few fans. Now, the chances of one final redemption for Daredevil are being entertained through his own solo outing Born Again, and we can’t wait to see if it’ll live up to the legacy of the award-winning original series.
What is Daredevil: Born Again‘s premise?
As with all the rest of the MCU projects still on the horizon, plot details for Daredevil: Born Again are being kept tightly under wraps. We do know that the story is going to be written by Matt Corman and Chris Ord, with Kevin Feige and Chris Gary overseeing the project. And given its name, the series might once again opt to adapt the Born Again comic series, which loosely served as the source material for the original Daredevil show.
In Born Again, Murdock faces his biggest challenge yet after his identity is exposed by criminal mastermind Kingpin. Matt then goes on a brutal quest of self-discovery to reclaim his life, and that story serves as the foundation of his character in the entire Marvel canon. Born Again is also gritty and dark in nature, so perhaps the MCU wants to assure the fandom that the Daredevil they know and love will be manifested in this upcoming Disney Plus outing.
Cox himself is hopeful that Kevin Feige will be able to get the balance just right. “My instinct is that on Disney Plus, it will be dark but it probably won’t be as gory,” he explained in a previous interview. “Let’s take the things that really worked, but can we broaden? Can we appeal to a slightly younger audience without losing what we’ve learned about what works?”
The cast of Daredevil: Born Again
It goes without saying that Charlie Cox is going to lead this ensemble in Born Again. His character is going up against Kingpin, who’ll be portrayed by Vincent D’Onofrio. The thespian brought the villain to life in the original Daredevil series and made his Marvel Studios debut in Hawkeye, so we can’t wait to see how he’ll approach Born Again, and whether his dynamic with Cox remains the same.
The most exciting reprisal, however, must be Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle, aka Punisher, whom we all love for his utter, sometimes bordering on manic, dedication to the vigilante cause. Lastly, we have newcomer Sandrine Holt as Kingpin’s recast wife, Vanessa Fisk.
Other former series regulars like Deborah Ann Woll aren’t expected to make a comeback, though Marvel has yet to confirm this, or any of the other numerous rumors swirling around the internet, for that matter.
When will Daredevil: Born Again come out?
Born Again will feature a staggering 18 episodes in its first season, which is the highest number of outings for an MCU series on Disney Plus to date.
Filming began in early 2023, with Michael Cuesta, Clark Johnson, Jeffrey Nachmanoff, and David Boyd coming on board to direct. Unfortunately, Marvel Studios has yet to finish principal photography on Born Again, and with the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes shutting down production completely, it’s unclear when the crew will get to return to the set and finish their work.
Daredevil: Born Again was originally supposed to be released in early 2024, but with the industry going on this indefinite pause, Marvel has removed the slated premiere date for now.