As Daredevil: Born Again filming continues, more leaked images from Matt Murdoch’s MCU franchise are surfacing online. The latest photos involve his arch nemesis, Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin, who looks unscathed, happy in his fairway, focused and thriving.
For Marvel fans who’ve seen Hawkeye, that shouldn’t be the case. Clint Barton and Kate Bishop’s series features the iconic moment Wilson Fisk is shot dead by his adopted niece Echo, in comic book tradition , an event that should have blinded him. While Marvel Studios rarely gets too close to the source material when it comes to adapting comic book storylines, how the producers will follow up the mystery of the Kingpin’s apparent downfall seems crucial to the new Daredevil franchise.
So the image shared on the Marvel Studios subreddit is even more confusing considering what happened to Hawkeye. Actor D’Onofrio can be seen on the set of Daredevil: Born Again without any signs of injury. Aside from that, D’Onofrio’s physique is much slimmer than he was in his Netflix days, especially in Hawkeye, and Kim doesn’t look huge, hence why this photo makes one wonder if it could have been taken from a flashback sequence.
Last week, a similar image of Charlie Cox seemed to hint at where Daredevil: Born Again would be set in the MCU’s timeline. However, those Daredevil fan theories are iffy at best. In Kingpin’s case, it’s been confirmed that there will be some flashbacks to the crime lord’s younger days, and his new suit and tie attire could also point to another piece of Marvel Comics history, namely Kingpin’s run for office.
In 2017’s Daredevil #28, Kingpin rigged a local election to become Mayor of New York City until Matt went undercover in the Cabinet to bring him down. A gray suit and blue shirt certainly fits a politician better than no-nonsense black and white or his new floral shirts, so at least his clothes hit all the right boxes. Previously, Marvel reps had said Kim would be wearing an eye patch throughout the series, but it looks like the big man’s injury will heal soon.
Kingpin isn’t all unfinished business in Daredevil: Born Again, as the show still has to decide if it’s a full MCU reboot that will also bring back The Punisher, or if it’s more of a continuation of the stories Netflix has already built for its cast .
Daredevil: Born Again is scheduled to air on Disney Plus in Spring 2024.