Some big news has emerged about the upcoming revival of the live-action Daredevil series from Marvel Studios, Daredevil: Born Again. According to a report by The Hollywood Reporter, director Michael Cuesta (Dexter, Homeland) has joined the show and will be directing the first episode of the new series.
Additionally, some new casting details have emerged for the series, including the news of a major role being recast from the original Netflix Daredevil television series.
CASTING NEWS SURFACES FOR DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN
Production on the new series is slated to start this month in New York. The show will feature Charlie Cox returning as the eponymous hero, Matthew Murdock aka Daredevil, and Vincent D’Onofrio as Wilson Fisk, aka The Kingpin. Jon Bernthal is also expected to reprise his role as Frank Castle, aka The Punisher.
Cuesta, who previously directed the pilot episodes of hit shows such as Dexter and Homeland, will be behind the camera for the first episode. However, casting details revealed that a major role from the Netflix iteration has been recast. It will now be Sandrine Holt portraying Fisk’s wife, Vanessa. The role was previously portrayed by Ayelet Zurer in Seasons 1 and 3 of the original series.
Other casting details have also surfaced from THR’s report. The call sheet for the series listed Michael Gandolfini (The Many Saints of Newark), Margarita Levieva, and Michael Gaston (Chicago P.D., Mayor of Kingstown). character details on their roles have not yet been revealed.
Also, THR notes that Cuesta is only slated to direct the first episode of the 18-episode season. More directors are reportedly being lined up to film blocks of episodes for the 18-episode season. Cuesta has experience directing the pilots for many prestigious hit series, including CBS’ Blue Bloods and Elementary. The pilot is important as it sets the tone, style, and overall look of a given series moving forward. He’s also worked on such shows as Dopesick and Billions.
The recasting of Vanessa Fisk is definitely interesting. It begs the question if Marvel Studios plans on recasting other roles, such as Benjamin Poindexter, an iteration of Bullseye from Season 3. Wilson Bethel portrayed the character in Season 3. Though he was a major adversary for Murdock in Season 3, he never made the full transition into becoming Bullseye.
Also, The Hollywood Reporter previously revealed in a separate story that major cast members from the first three seasons, Elden Henson (Foggy Nelson) and Deborah Ann Woll (Karen Page), won’t be returning for the new series. Foggy was Matt’s best friend and former law partner in the previous series. Karen was his one-time girlfriend and later became an ace reporter for The New York Bulletin, following in the footsteps of her late friend Ben Urich (portrayed by Vondie Curtis-Hall in the first season).
It’s unclear if Foggy and Karen will be absent from the new series or recast with different actors. Hopefully, it will be a matter of the former, potentially leaving the door open for the characters to return in later episodes or seasons. However, now that one significant role from the original series has been recast, it leaves the door open for other characters to be recast as well.
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Additionally, Foggy and Karen Page both played recurring roles in other Marvel Netflix series. Both actors appeared in The Defenders, and Foggy also made appearances in Luke Cage, becoming the lawyer for Luke in Season 2. Karen Page also appeared in multiple episodes of the first season of The Punisher, as she formed a close bond and friendship with Bernthal’s Frank Castle in Daredevil Season 2 that carried over into The Punisher.
The show takes its title from a famous Daredevil storyline by Frank Miller and David Mazzuchelli published in 1986. It’s unclear how closely the show will tie into the comic storyline. However, Season 3 also utilized elements from the Born Again storyline, along with Guardian Devil.
The new series is being written and executive produced by Matt Corman and Chris Ord. It’s slated to debut later next year on Disney+. The show will feature 18 episodes.
What do you think of the news? Do you think Michael Cuests is a good fit for Daredevil: Born Again? What about the casting of Sandrine Holt as the new Vanessa Fisk? Are you upset that Ayelet Zurer won’t be returning to the new series? Let us know what you think about the news on The Illuminerdi Twitter account.
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SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter
