Credit: Marvel StudiosAs fans wait for the arrival of Daredevil: Born Again, Marvel seemingly uproots the series’ canon with the recently released Echo. Kingpin actor Vincent D’Onofrio pulls back the curtain on the now-canonical changes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Although the prolific Marvel supervillain is essential to the original Netflix series, Kingpin has made further appearances in the spinoff series on Disney+, including the recent Hawkeye follow-up. However, is this the same character that ran the criminal underworld of Hell’s Kitchen?
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The new Daredevil: Born again is supposedly a fresh start for the characters to better fit the MCU, and Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock has already had a head start with his appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Based on what fans have seen in the new iterations, Murdock/Daredevil is a touch more light-hearted as depicted in his original comics, but can the same be said for his nemesis?
Vincent D’Onofrio Confirms Canon MCU Changes
A recent article from The Direct illustrated that Echo and its connection to the Defenders-era shows (Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders) are brought to the MCU by way of the Multiverse. A comprehensible scenario, but one that’s been wearing out its welcome for a long while.
The report reads,
“Up until recently, Marvel Studios has had a weird issue with the ‘Daredevil” shows. When ‘Hawkeye”’came out, we saw Vincent D’Onofrio return as the Kingpin, but fans were told this is a different Kingpin and then, in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home,’ Charlie Cox returned as Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, and he has also since cameoed in the “She-Hulk: Attorney At Law” Disney+ series.”
‘Once again, fans were told that these weren’t the exact same characters we saw in the old series, and Marvel was using the “multiverse” as an excuse as to why it worked.”
“However, that has recently all changed, with all of the ‘Defender’ shows…being added to the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline.”
Rewrites like this can make the Multiverse concept more convoluted and confusing than all-encompassing, but where does this put the current state of the Daredevil reboot?
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Vincent D’Onofrio shared how Marvel has flipped the script on the popular spinoffs, as well as what this means for the big bad of the Big Apple.
The actor shared,
“During our restart of all the creative on Daredevil: Born Again, all the creatives got together and said, ‘Look, this is how we’ve got to do it now.’ So we are for sure only speaking about it in terms of being directly connected to the original Daredevil, and that’s a great thing. It brings in a lot of cool stories and all the collateral story that happened in those original three seasons. So we now get to start this Born Again situation with all of that history behind us and the outcome of all that history. So we’re all talking about Daredevil: Born Again in those terms now.”
Daredevil: Born Again has had to pull itself from the ashes, as the entire 18 episode premise previously announced at 2022’s San Diego Comic-Con was officially scrapped after the first four episodes were seen. Sometimes the best thing that can be done for any project is to simply start over.
Several new developments have transpired since the original show was axed, such as Marvel’s goal of no longer treating its shows like big-budget movies and rather shifting control to established showrunners. With Eric Martin (head writer of Disney+’s Loki), shifting focus to the TVA, the series was given much more room to breathe. The same thing could easily be in Daredevil’s future.
When asked about the fan reception, D’Onofrio added,
“I’ve been acting for forty-something years, and so I’m used to working with many different kinds of creative people. The best ones have a completely unique look at things, and so it never surprises me when things change a bit from project to project. It just doesn’t. The most we can do is be very savvy when it comes to the canon of these characters, Daredevil and Kingpin. We need to be on it when it comes to the right tone, and we need to give them what they’re looking for when it comes to this kind of storytelling… As an actor, I can’t answer all of that stuff, but I can bring a performance forward for them that they’re going to appreciate. “
Big things are definitely in store for the upcoming reboot, and fans definitely can’t wait to see more Kingpin. It’s comforting to know that the actor behind this fan-favorite character is just as invested in the series as its audience and that they are going to be treated to an incredible performance either way.
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Daredevil: Born Again will be a Disney+ exclusive that fits into the same sect of the MCU as Echo, Hawkeye, Moon Knight, and other spinoff series. The show is expected to be released in 2024.
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