Both Marvel Studios' Hawkeye and Spider-Man: No Way Home have one key thing in common: they brought back characters from the Netflix-hosted show Daredevil. Not only that, but the same actors returned in the roles as well, with the figures in question being none other than Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin and Charlie Cox’s Daredevil.
In No Way Home, Cox didn’t get to don the superhero suit as he did in Daredevil, but he did get a fun cameo with Tom Holland’s Peter Parker. This is also the first time the two have shared the same screen in live-action.
As for D’Onofrio, his return as Wilson Fisk was a little meatier than his former enemies’. For Hawkeye, he served as the show’s big bad behind the curtain. Not only that, but he got to have a pivotal fight sequence against Hailee Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop in the finale. While both of their appearances had long been rumored, seeing the duo embody their roles once more was a dream come true for many.
It would seem that these returns are being noticed, as recently it was reported how Daredevil broke into Nielsen's top 10 watched shows—three years after it was canned, no less. This is certainly a feat. Now it seems some former cast and crew are catching wind of the news.
Daredevil's Rejuvenated Popularity
Recently, Deadline reported that Daredevil cracked the Nielsen Top 10 rankings three years after its cancelation, garnering 195 million minutes in the week of December 20-26 to become the eighth-most-watched streaming series in that period. Former Daredevil stars caught on, including Deborah Ann Woll, who played Karen Page in the former Netflix series, as well as its companion series The Punisher.
Woll retweeted that article, and then went on to comment on another that complimented her character in the series, saying she "appreciate[s] all the kind words." She then went on to list off characters from the show along with her co-stars that played those roles:
"Thanks Janina!! And to the author of the article. I appreciate all the kind words. I miss Karen, I miss Matt, I miss Frank, i miss Brett, I miss Foggy, Ellison, Blake, Marcie, Ben and yes even Wilson. And all the rest. Good times."
The actress joked she missed Wesley as well, saying: "But yeah... it's complicated." For those who don't remember, Wesley was one of Wilson Fisk's lackeys who had an unfortunate run-in with Karen Page that ended his life.
Steven DeKnight, former executive producer for Daredevil's first season, also chipped in on the matter by congratulating the cast and crew for "three wonderful seasons:"
"Congrats to the cast and crew who poured their hearts into #Daredevil for three wonderful seasons!"
Skylar Gaertner, the actor who played young Matt Murdock, responded to DeKnight's tweet saying: "Hey Steven. That's amazing."
The Return of Daredevil And Its Actors
With the show breaking into the rankings like this, it shows clearly how fans missed Matt Murdock and his world. Furthermore, it indicates that there was enough interest generated to convince people who had never seen the show to go seek it out.
This is only the beginning. It’s not known where the two will pop up next. Still, rumors are pointing towards Charlie Cox’s Daredevil appearing in the upcoming She-Hulk series and Vincent D’Onofrio being one of the key villains of the forthcoming Echo Disney+ show starring Alaqua Cox.
With the successful reception to Daredevil’s reintegration, seems to be only a matter of time before other former Netflix stars join the party as well. This could include names like Kristen Ritter’s Jessica Jones or Jon Bernthal’s Punisher.
Of course, there are others who audiences will likely never see again; everyone knows who they are.
