The Marvel Cinematic Universe ended its Disney+ run on a high note last year thanks to Hawkeye. The show saw Jeremy Renner's Clint Barton and Hailee Steinfeld's Kate Bishop trying to clean up a big Ronin-sized mess before Christmas day. Their story was a fun, emotional, and action-filled romp. Not only that, but it brought back one of the biggest Marvel villains in recent years: Kingpin.
Vincent D'Onofrio's organized crime lord was last seen back in Netflix's Daredevil before it was canceled. Fans always hoped for the actor and character to return but never knew if that dream had the chance of coming true.
Thanks to Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, those prayers were answered, and the MCU got its own updated and redefined Wilson Fisk. This time around, he was bigger, more resilient, and fashioned Hawaiian shirts.
According to one of the show's directors, audiences may have seen the big bad gain even more weight.
Hawkeye Almost Made Kingpin Even Larger
During the recently released Assembled episode for Hawkeye, director Trinh Tran commented on how Kingpin could have been a lot bigger.
Tran commented how "(they) had talked about doing a heavier set version of Kingpin," but in the end, they ultimately wanted to go in a "completely different" direction:
“We had talked about doing a heavier set version of Kingpin. But ultimately, we wanted to go completely different, in a different direction for this character. To put him in that Hawaiian shirt was kind of like a dream come true.”
In the comics, Kingpin could weigh as heavy as 450 pounds, and Peter Parker is never afraid to call him fat.
Kingpin actor Vincent D'Onofrio, who still gained about 20 pounds for his MCU comeback, added how they were able to "(get) really in-depth about things," which led to some "very intense" moments on set—the best kind of intense, of course:
“I really loved playing this character. I liked creating him from the art of guys like David Mack... we had talks and she gets really in-depth about things. I love that because I was able to explain how I feel about the character and what motivates the character. And Fisk is really driven by emotion. You know, he’s like a child and a monster both at the same time. So it got very intense yesterday and it got a little bit intense today, too.”
Daredevil's Kingpin Returns to Marvel
The last time viewers saw Vincent D'Onofrio's Fisk, he seemed to have been shot down by his adopted daughter, Maya Lopez. Even though that's what it looked like, fans should know better than to think Marvel would bring him back only to kill him immediately.
Kingpin is likely to be the key villain of Alaqua Cox's Echo Disney+ series, which doesn't have a set release yet. The show is also rumored to bring in the rest of Daredevil's cast, including the Devil of Hell's Kitchen himself, Charlie Cox—who was already spotted in the MCU during Spider-Man: No Way Home.
This updated version of D'Onofrio's villain in Hawkeye will certainly be interesting to see go up against both Daredevil and Echo, especially if he ends up temporarily blinded like when Echo shot him in the comics.
Given the general love for the character and the actor's passion for the role, Kingpin undoubtedly has a long future in the MCU. Maybe he'll even end up going against Tom Holland's webhead one day.
Catch the new-and-improved Kingpin in Hawkeye streaming on Disney+.
