about the NEW daredevil SERIES on disney+

+ Q: Why did Kevin Feige fire Matt Corman and Chris Ord from Daredevil: Born Again, and who is going to replace them?

A: On October 11, 2023 THR broke the news that in late September Marvel let go of executive producers Corman and Ord, along with the directors, as part of a creative reboot to make the series more closely resemble its Netflix inception. This reset is part of a whole new approach Marvel Studios will be undertaking, i.e. learning to love “traditional TV culture,” by writing pilots, show bibles, and hiring showrunners to oversee a creative throughline, as required by their freshly inked contract with the WGA.

These are things we as a campaign have been openly longing for since the MCU TV experiment began, so it was surprise met with a sense of inevitability when on October 27th Variety announced that Marvel Studios had found its new showrunner in Dario Scardapane, who wrote and executive produced Marvel’s The Punisher.

As previously reported, Jon Bernthal will be reprising his role as Frank Castle in Daredevil: Born Again, so hiring Scardapane will no doubt please fans of the anti-hero, and perhaps bode well for Daredevil fans who were hoping for a darker, grittier Man Without Fear in his Disney+ revival.

+ Q: I read that Elden and Deborah won’t be in Daredevil: Born Again. Why aren’t you fighting for them? I thought Save Daredevil was about more than Charlie Cox.

A: Save Daredevil was indeed about more than Charlie Cox. The proof is embedded in the history of our campaign.

The Hollywood Reporter noted there was no mention of either character on the roll call they saw, but that it was unclear if the characters had been recast or excised from the story. This isn’t the same as saying they won’t be in it.

That being said, as Born Again is in full production we have entered the wait and see stage of our campaign. Anything that could have been done from our end has been done.

+ Q: I read that recasting Vanessa means that the first three seasons of Daredevil aren’t canon.

A: The truth is, we don’t know why Ayelet won't be back. It’s very possible Marvel Studios wanted her, but she was simply unavailable.

The internet is full of self-appointed authorities on the inner workings of the mind of Kevin Feige. Don’t listen to them. Edward Norton’s Incredible Hulk is MCU canon, despite the fact Mark Ruffalo replaced him as the face of Bruce Banner. Unless there is something huge that directly contradicts previous events, don’t waste your time trying to make sense of rumors and conjecture.

+ Q: I’m worried Disney will ruin Daredevil by making it child-friendly.

A: It’s a valid concern considering most of the Disney+ Marvel series that have been produced so far, but it’s worth keeping in mind that the Netflix shows were produced by Disney-owned Marvel Entertainment and ABC Signature. It was also recently announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2022 that Marvel Zombies is going to be TV-MA.

Now that Bob Chapek’s tenure at Disney has been brought to an abrupt end, there’s renewed concern the return of Bob Iger will kill any hope of Daredevil being TV-MA.

We can only emphasise that as of now, nothing official has been announced regarding the maturity level of Born Again, however, Kevin Feige confirmed in February, 2023 that Marvel Studios' first Deadpool film would also be its first R-rated film.

+ Q: Why didn’t Marvel Studios hire the showrunner / original writers room from Netflix's Daredevil?

A: It’s safe to say that revolving writers and showrunners became the norm for Netflix's Daredevil, starting with Drew Goddard who is credited as the creator. Goddard wrote the first two episodes of season one before handing the baton off to Steven DeKnight. Doug Petrie and Marco Ramierz took over showrunning responsibilities for season two before Erik Oleson came on board for season three.

While it was always our wish to see the return of as many of the original cast, crew and creatives as possible, we have to acknowledge it was always a very distinct possibility they simply would not be available. Steven DeKnight is currently working on a new Spartacus project, and it was recently reported that Erik Oleson has extended his exclusive contract with Amazon Prime as he sets up his own production company. So it's with that we extend to them our sincere congratulations, and wish them the best of luck in their new endeavors.

post-moratorium questions

+ Q: What will happen to Daredevil now that it’s been removed from Netflix?

A:Disney has confirmed that Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, and The Punisher will be available to stream on Disney+ on March 16 in the U.S., Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and Disney+ Hotstar in India, with updated parental controls for mature and violent content for the U.S.. The Defendersverse will be made available in all Disney+ markets later this year (2022).

https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/daredevil-marvel-stream-disney-plus-1235188404/

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/marvel-netflix-shows-daredevil-disney-1235091929/

+ Q: Since Daredevil is rumored to appear in multiple MCU properties, does he really need his own solo project?

A: Yes! We firmly believe the character of Daredevil is more than compelling enough to stand on his own, with a wealth of source material and a foundation built on the successful Netflix series to sustain him and us for years to come. We also have the utmost faith in the star power of Charlie Cox, whose fanbase is currently growing at an exponential pace. It is possible for Matt Murdock to show up in other shows and films in a supporting capacity and still have his own solo show, which can be more grounded in the mature themes, action, and storytelling style we all enjoyed from the original show.

+ Q: How would the campaign feel about a soft reboot so he fits more into the MCU but isn't bound to what came before?

A: If we’re realistic, a soft reboot was always inevitable. Even though season 3 of Daredevil ended in a great place for one, a continuation means a season four, and when Netflix washed its hands of the NMCU five years ago, that chapter was closed. Too much time in-universe will have passed for them to pick up where they left off and have it make sense. A new-ish story set in the same-ish universe is what we’re gathering from how Daredevil: Born Again has consistently been described.

Having said that, the newly announced creative reset for DD:BA came with this quote from THR:

But sources say that Corman and Ord crafted a legal procedural that did not resemble the Netflix version, known for its action and violence. Cox didn’t even show up in costume until the fourth episode. Marvel, after greenlighting the concept, found itself needing to rethink the original intention of the show.

The powers that be appear to want their new Daredevil series to follow the old Daredevil series– to what degree remains to be seen. Of course it’s always wise to take these reports with a grain of salt, but from our point of view this is a positive development.

For more insight into our perspective on this topic, you can watch our Jan 2021 YouTube minisode about why Daredevil doesn't need a (full) reboot, here:

And listen to our more recent December 2021 #TalkDaredevil podcast episode on soft reboots here:

+ Q: But isn't Feige already planning to reboot Daredevil?

A: In December, 2021, Sean O’Connell of Cinemablend reported these words from Kevin Feige:

“If you were to see Daredevil in upcoming things, Charlie Cox, yes, would be the actor playing Daredevil. Where we see that, how we see that, when we see that, remains to be seen.”

Since then Charlie has cameoed in Spider-Man: No Way Home, made a guest appearance on Disney Plus’s She-Hulk, and just to prove he wasn’t kidding, at 2022's San Diego Comic Con, Kevin Feige announced eighteen episodes of Daredevil: Born Again to debut on Disney Plus in 2024.

We’ve also seen Vincent D’Onofrio reprise his role as Kingpin in the Disney+ series, Hawkeye, sporting the same cufflinks that were an important part of his characterization on the original Netflix series. In various interviews and tweets, Vincent has also taken it upon himself to assuage fans who are worried we’re seeing an entirely new version of Fisk, saying:

“I was able to bring that exact character into > Hawkeye> . Although in > Hawkeye> he’s physically stronger, he is that same character and it is the same canon,” D’Onofrio says. “The idea was to connect as many dots between > Daredevil> and > Hawkeye> as we could.”

While this is by no means a promise that we are going to see a season four of Daredevil that picks up where we left off, we think it’s reasonable to breathe a small sigh of relief that the intention does not appear to be a full scale reboot. It also provides renewed hope that our dream to see Foggy, Karen, Ellison, et al, folded back into the mix is still alive and worth fighting for.

+ Q: Why are you still here if Daredevil has been saved?

A: In May 2022, when the Hollywood trades announced a “new but continued” Daredevil project was in development, we officially declared this campaign a success, and #SaveDaredevil transitioned to #_Saved_Daredevil. And with the surprise announcement at San Diego Comic-Con 2022 of Daredevil returning as an 18 episode series on Disney+, we can consider this shift officially done!

As fans, we want nothing more than to share our love for this amazing character and to continue growing the amazing Fandom Without Fear as many more people discover him. So for anyone waiting to see us ride off into the sunset, no such luck! We will be driving the Born Again hype train all the way to Spring 2024 and beyond, bringing you all the news, podcasts, and fanfare we can muster!

ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN

+ Q: How do you fund your campaign? Where did the money for the Times Square billboard come from?

A: Most of the initiatives we've put on over these last three years are self-funded by the team but we have been fortunate to have some of those costs defrayed through fan donations through our Ko-Fi page. Those funds have gone to producing swag for cons, helping with website hosting costs, and funding gifts that we have sent out to Marvel execs. The Times Square billboard in particular was made possible by a generous donation from a Daredevil fan!

+ Q: This campaign is way too professional and organized to be fan-run. Are you Disney?

A: No, we're not Disney! We're just a group of fans who came together shortly before the Daredevil cancellation and have decided to stick together to fight for the return of our show. If you'd like to learn more about us, we have a brief about page here. We did an interview with ManWithoutFear.com in January 2019 here and another interview with ComicBook.com in March 2019 here, and one in April 2019 with ComicsVerse here.

+Q: Has your campaign felt supported or encouraged by anyone from the show or the powers that be at Marvel?

A: Absolutely, their support has sustained us, starting from when Vincent namechecked our campaign on Twitter, and Charlie gave us our very first in-person shout-out at Ace Comic Con, to Erik Oleson joining us at our SDCC fan meetup, to Joe Quesada, Charlie Cox, and other cast members showing up at our rooftop party in NYCC 2019, and the various cast and creatives who participated in our #SaveDaredevilCon panels and 10 Questions series on Instagram. Most recently, Charlie gave us yet another shout-out at the 2021 MCM London Comic Con in October 2021.



+ Q: Are the petition and SaveDaredevil.com the same thing?

A: No, but we are working together. The original SaveDaredevil.com began as a social media campaign + website on Monday, November 26, 2018 under the hashtag #RenewDaredevil. But before the initial campaign could fully launch, the show was cancelled, and as a result, we pivoted the campaign into #SaveDaredevil. Separately from this, a petition was started by another passionate Daredevil fan, Joseph Garcia. When it was clear his petition was garnering the most attention of all the fan-initiated petitions, we decided to reach out, partnering on promotion and petition updates that align the campaign and petition more closely together, allowing fans to easily find both. So if you have a question about the petition, reach out to him on Twitter; if you have a campaign question, you can reach out to us!

+ Q: Are you also campaigning to save other Marvel/Netflix properties?

A: Many of us are big fans of some or all of the other Marvel shows in addition to Daredevil, and we are supportive of the initiatives of other fans who, like us, want to express support for their favorite show in ways that are constructive and positive.

However, Daredevil remains the most obvious common denominator for all of the fans in the "Fandom Without Fear" and focusing on this cast of characters and this show helps keep our message on point, and Daredevil fans engaged. The logistics of running just the one campaign is keeping many of us quite busy!

This also means that we are not officially associated with any petition other than the one linked to on this website.

ARCHIVED QUESTIONS

Click here to view our list of archived questions.