Back in October, word came in that Daredevil: Born Again was making some major behind-the-scenes changes following Kevin Feige and the other higher-ups at Marvel Studios reportedly being unimpressed by what had been shot so far. The result was a new Born Again creative team being put together, and with these hires would also come some major changes to the upcoming Marvel TV show’s story. I’d written around this time that I hoped this included Foggy Nelson and Karen Page being brought back, and much to my delight, some set videos have confirmed that these Daredevil fan favorites are indeed returning.
Videos shared by X user @kolyambo960 show Elden Henson and Deborah Ann Woll reprising their roles from the original Daredevil series. The actors can first be seen shooting a scene involving them entering a ramen restaurant, and then are later shown walking down a street with costar Charlie Cox, a.k.a. the MCU’s Matt Murdock. When this show was initially being put together, there was no plan to include Henson and Woll in the Daredevil: Born Again cast, but now there’s proof that we’ll see them again, although it’s unclear whether they will be series regulars or only guest starring.
Had the original incarnation of Daredevil: Born Again moved forward, rumor had it that Matt had retired from being the Man Without Fear after failing to save Foggy from being killed, and Karen was supposedly not even mentioned in this series that, like the other Marvel Studios shows, will be streaming exclusively to Disney+ subscribers. Considering how important Foggy and Karen are to the Daredevil mythos, I found it strange that the show opted to treat the characters this way, but it’s good to see that these alleged plot points have been scrapped.
Confirmation of Elden Henson and Deborah Ann Woll’s involvement in Born Again comes a few days after it was reported that Wilson Bethel will reprise Benjamin Poindexter, whom he originally played in Daredevil Season 3. According to Deadline, Bethel will appear in three episodes, but it’s unclear if he’ll officially become Bullseye in the series, as in the original Daredevil show, he killed people either while dressed normally or wearing a Daredevil costume on behalf of Wilson Fisk, a.k.a. Kingpin.
Speaking of Kingpin, Vincent D’Onofrio will also play a prominent role in Daredevil: Born Again, with the Echo miniseries’ ending teasing that he’ll either run for Mayor of New York City in the new show or already be elected to that office when we reunite with him. Additionally, Jon Bernthal is confirmed to be reprising Frank Castle, a.k.a. The Punisher, and while this should come as welcome news for fans who enjoyed his and Karen Page’s relationship across both Daredevil and The Punisher spinoff series, whether or not Bernthal and Woll will share any screen time in Born Again remains to be seen.
As for new faces, Daredevil: Born Again will feature actors like Margarita Levieva, Michael Gandolfini, Nikki M. James and Sandrine Holt, the latter of whom is taking over as Vanessa Fisk. Since production on the series only just resumed, it’ll likely be a long time until the show premieres on Disney+. Still, that doesn’t have to stop you from checking out the MCU’s other TV shows or going through the Marvel movies in order.