Credit: NetflixThe Man Without Fear is officially back on the small screen–but will the cast of Daredevil: Born Again eventually make it into movie theaters? The jury is still out.
Daredevil: Born Again was initially announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, with Kevin Feige confirming the 18-episode season would be hitting Disney+ in the near future. Between then and its March 2025 debut, Daredevil: Born Again has gone through quite the identity shift.
Overhauled from its original premise, Disney fired creators Matt Corman and Chris Ord, as well as the team of directors and writers, before hiring Dario Scardapane as showrunner.
This massive shift came amid scrutiny of Marvel Studios’ way of producing and developing content for Disney+–something Marvel executive Brad Winderbaum (Head of Streaming, Television and Animation) commented on when he shared that the studio would be operating with a more traditional TV model of using showrunners and developing more than would be produced.
Leading the new directing squad were Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, the duo involved in other popular Marvel entries, Moon Knight and Loki.
With the overhaul came new cast members to star alongside Charlie Cox (Matt Murdock/Daredevil) and Vincent D’Onofrio (Wilson Fisk/Kingpin), including the returns of Elden Henson, Deborah Ann Woll, and Jon Bernthal as Foggy Nelson, Karen Page, and Frank Castle/Punisher, as well as a reduction of episodes. The first season will close with nine, with a second eight-episode season seemingly scheduled for 2026.
While Daredevil: Born Again has been largely well-received, criticism is still rooted in the almost Frankenstein attempt to stitch together two opposing shows. Notably, the fifth episode, “With Interest,” a bottle episode featuring mainly Cox’s Matt Murdock and Ms. Marvel’s Yusuf Khan (Mohan Kapur), was kept from pre-overhaul, while other episodes have largely tried to blend the two together.
Now, with the Daredevil cast of characters officially in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, many are wondering if–or when–the heroes and villains of this story will transition to the big screen. Of course, Cox’s Matt Murdock already appeared in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), but what about D’Onofrio’s Fisk or Bernthal’s Punisher?
Well, as for the latter, Bernthal is co-writing a Marvel Special Presentation revolving around the Punisher, which may not be as integrated as some had hoped but is sure to keep fans baited. As for the Kingpin, according to D’Onofrio himself, there’s no chance of him appearing just yet.
“The only thing I know is not positive. It’s a very hard thing to do, for Marvel to use my character,” D’Onofrio told Josh Horowitz (via Comic Book Movie). “It’s a very hard thing to do because of ownership and stuff.”
“Right now, I’m only usable for television series,” the actor continued. “Different kinds of series, whatever it is, but not even a one-off Fisk movie or anything like that, it’s all caught up in rights and stuff. I don’t know when that would work out, or if it ever would work out at all, actually.”
D’Onofrio was responding to whether or not he may appear in the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026) alongside Tom Holland.
While rights and ownership are tricky beasts to understand—just look at how Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios almost let go of the Spider-Man franchise due to a contractual breakdown—D’Onofrio’s comments have not been confirmed by Marvel or Disney, so there is still a chance Wilson Fisk could appear.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day will be the first movie to drop after Avengers: Doomsday (2026)–the upcoming Phase Six event from returning directors Antony and Joe Russo, AKA the Russo Brothers.
It was only last week that Marvel revealed the cast for Avengers: Doomsday in epic fashion, confirming the likes of Sebastian Stan (Bucky/Winter Soldier), Pedro Pascal (Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic), and Chris Hemsworth (Thor) will join Robert Downey Jr. (Victor Von Doom/Doctor Doom) in the 2026 feature film.
While the Avengers: Doomsday–and likely Avengers: Secret Wars (2027)–cast is stacked, the involvement of Charlie Cox’s iconic vigilante is not yet confirmed. With Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 likely airing in early-mid 2026, there is a chance a connection could form between the Disney+ show and the future Avengers installment.
The Netflix Story
Marvel’s Daredevil, Netflix’s flagship Marvel series that ran from 2015 to 2018, remains one of the most acclaimed entries in the superhero genre. Starring Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock—a blind lawyer who moonlights as the vigilante Daredevil—the show brought a darker, more grounded tone to the expanded MCU.
Set in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen, the series followed Murdock’s fight for justice alongside his law partner Foggy Nelson (Henson) and journalist Karen Page (Woll). At the heart of the conflict was D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk, a formidable Kingpin whose layered performance made him one of Marvel’s most compelling villains.
The show also introduced key characters like Rosario Dawson’s Claire Temple, Élodie Yung’s Elektra, and Jon Bernthal’s fan-favorite Frank Castle/The Punisher.
Created by Drew Goddard and led by a rotating team of showrunners—Steven S. DeKnight, Doug Petrie, Marco Ramirez, and Erik Oleson—the series became known for its intense fight choreography, morally complex storytelling, and haunting score by John Paesano.
As the first of Marvel’s Netflix lineup, it paved the way for Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Defenders, yet it remained the standout for its emotional depth and gritty realism.
With Cox and D’Onofrio now starring in Marvel’s Daredevil: Born Again, the original series continues to cast a long shadow over the Marvel fandom.
How do you feel about the Daredevil: Born Again cast appearing in the MCU on the big screen? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!