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Credit: Inside the MagicMore works appear to be making their way into the mainline MCU canon!
Related: Fans Slam Marvel’s Latest Decision to Axe ‘Daredevil’ Cast
Netflix’s Marvel run of Daredevil (2015) directed by Drew Goddard was ridiculously popular. So popular that the #SaveDaredevil campaign on social media actually got the show saved. After a long hiatus, the character of Matt Murdock/Daredevil, portrayed by Charlie Cox, made a comeback in Phase Four and Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s (MCU) Multiverse Saga, appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022), with the latter episode generally considered the highlight of the critically disliked show.
In Kevin Feige’s announcement at San Diego Comic Con 2022, the President of Marvel Studios revealed the expansion of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) to include superhero teams that deal with different types of villains, such as cosmic, supernatural, and street-level threats. This expansion will be led by characters like Tom Holland’s Peter Parker/Spider-Man and Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock/Daredevil, who crossed paths in Spider-Man: No Way Home. As Daredevil has not been featured in the MCU since the 2010s, Marvel Studios will need to reintroduce him to current audiences through the upcoming Daredevil: Born Again series, which has become a topic of contention.
Currently confirmed characters from the original set to return for Daredevil: Born Again include Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio), considered one of the MCU’s scariest villains, and Frank Castle/Punisher (Jon Bernthal), a complex antihero.
Marvel Studios has yet to officially announce the return of Elden Henson’s Foggy Nelson and Deborah Ann Woll’s Karen Page, and Marvel fans are noticeably upset — especially after Ayelet Zurer’s Vanessa Fisk was recast as Sandrine Holt — but it’s possible that now an official announcement might not even be necessary.
Related: ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Explained: What We Might See In Marvel’s Revival
What the Daredevil: Born Again news tells us about the MCU’s future
According to multiple MCU insider sources, it appears that the new Daredevil show is canonizing certain elements of its original Netflix series’ run — after Kevin Feige told fans that only elements from the Disney+ catalogue of MCU works would be officially “canon” to the timeline.
Initially, MCU source CanWeGetSomeToast shared that the upcoming Disney+ series Echo would bring something from Season One of Netflix’s Daredevil into the MCU canon:
#Echo has something that will point to Daredevil (at least Season 1) being canon to the MCU 👀
#Echo has something that will point to Daredevil (at least Season 1) being canon to the MCU 👀 pic.twitter.com/IkbS6YFmXn
— CanWeGetSomeToast (@CanWeGetToast) April 21, 2023
Responding to this later, CanWeGetSomeToast clarifies that this source indicates all of Daredevil becoming canon to the MCU. Co-founder of The Direct, Jack McBryan seemingly confirms this statement, and additionally shares that it isn’t a “surface level general DD thing”, but instead a “very specific event” from the first Daredevil season.
Jack McBryan: I have heard about a plot element in Born Again that directly refers to something that happened in Season 1 of Daredevil. Not like a surface level general DD thing, but a very specific event that happened in Season 1. Things are looking good for the canon crowd.
(quoted tweet) CanWeGetToast: Actually got some clarification on this. It points to ALL of Daredevil being canon to the MCU. Nice
I have heard about a plot element in Born Again that directly refers to something that happened in Season 1 of Daredevil. Not like a surface level general DD thing, but a very specific event that happened in Season 1. Things are looking good for the canon crowd. https://t.co/RyzlnNqo1p
— Jack McBryan (@McBDirect) April 24, 2023
It’s not just Daredevil fans that are likely rejoicing after hearing these leaks, though. With this news, it can be gleaned that Feige intends to extend this “canonization” — to earlier works in what used to be “MCU canon”. This tells us that it’s entirely likely that (2016) with Mike Colter (), Iron Fist (2017) starring Finn Jones (Danny Rand/Iron Fist), and (2015) starring Krysten Ritter (Jessica Jones) — and anything within The Defenders (2017) continuity — are also canon to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, today.
What do you think of Marvel Studios “canonizing” older Netflix shows? Share your thoughts in the comments below!