What made Netflix’s original take on Daredevil (2015) the standard for the upcoming Disney+ continuation, Born Again, to follow? Well, it’s not just one thing.
It’s a blend of key elements like compelling and earnest performances from the cast, honouring the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen by staying true to his comic book roots while presenting a story that was fresh and intriguing to look at, killer score from John Paesano, and most importantly (for many fans), the makers not shying away from bringing Rated-R violence to the audience.
MCU projects, or should we say many of the Disney-backed MCU projects, are notorious for being all sizzle and no steak. Marvel hyped Echo as their first-ever Rated-R project, supposedly bound to please fans of Netflix’s Daredevil. Well, despite Alaqua Cox giving everything she got, the show not only failed to entertain the fanbase of the OG Daredevil series, but it also failed to impress those viewers who never really watched Netflix’s version in the first place.
We can unearth various other projects from Marvel Studios that promised to deliver big but ended up being only mere flashes in the pan. Speaking of violence, Deadpool & Wolverine bestowed tons of eye-popping violence which was enough to please the diehard MCU fans, but its story was hollow.
Which is why, despite Daredevil: Born Again marking Charlie Cox’s return as Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, in his own solo show after nearly seven long years, fans are being a bit too cautious about showcasing their excitement for the upcoming Disney+ series. Honestly, we can’t blame them!
In his recent interview with Empire, showrunner Dario Scardapane teased that Born Again will be very violent. In fact, the show has gone harder than ever before.
“The level of violence is way up there for a Marvel/Disney show,” he says. “I don’t think there’s anything else even in the ballpark. There’s a moment in this that is just absolutely batshit and way past anything Netflix ever did.”
Well, can it top Wilson Fisk, aka Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio), slamming a guy’s head with a car door? Multiple times? Until Fisk goes absolutely berserk? We’ll see about that.
But wait! D’Onofrio has something to say as well!
“There’s a world in which you might think that if that show had kept running, we’d be in this place eventually, or something like it,” says D’Onofrio. “But we’ve gone further into the darkness, the action, the nastiness.”
Honestly, these comments give us (especially the writer of this article, who is a big Netflix’s Daredevil fan, tbh) a ray of hope. The show’s promotional clips certainly look promising. They don’t feature many violent moments, but whatever glimpses we’ve seen so far look pretty sick.
Not showing too much violence also makes sense, as Marvel might be planning to catch viewers by surprise. Yet, fans’ concerns about the show are valid.
It’s unclear how their fragile truce shatters into million pieces, but at the start of Born Again, we may see Murdock and Fisk in an uneasy alliance, pretending to be friends in public. But Scardapane has disclosed that the dynamic between these iconic characters is “way more tense” than previous Daredevil seasons. Well, these fragile bonds don’t last long, and they tend to backfire on those involved.
Let’s see what happens. Daredevil: Born Again will be released on Disney+ Hotstar on March 4. Stay tuned for more updates.