WhenDaredevilappeared on the small screen in 2015, it was something of a revelation. The Netflix show was much darker than the silver-screen Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it was connected. The show referenced the infamous ‘Battle of New York’ that took place in 2012’sAvengersfilm, when the world discovered that the Avengers were a collection of superheroes to be reckoned with. The isolated Netflix Marvel shows culminated in the development ofThe Defenders, consisting of Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Daredevil. The final season ofDaredevilwas aired in 2018, shortly before Disney+ took audiences by storm.
Daredevil has not appeared in cinema for nearly two decades, and for good reason.2003’sDaredevilis widely considered one of the worst Marvel superhero filmsof all time. However, this was beforeIron Manlaunched in 2008 and brought the MCU along with it. Marvel films have significantly improved since the first decade of the 21st century, and Daredevil deserves to find redemption in this shared universe.
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Marvel is Beefing up Street-Level Stories
Since shelving the Netflix Marvel universe,Disney+ has made a concerted effortto bring the audience street-level superhero chronicles that are worthy of its time.The Falcon and the Winter Soldieradvanced Captain America’s legacy while providing viewers with a tale about espionage and terrorism. It also touched on issues of race and class in a way that Marvel had previously never done, on the big or small screen.
Hawkeyecomes out next week and will explore the bow-armed Avenger’s family life and street-level adventures. The first teaser forMoon Knightjust dropped this week, a character that has some interaction with Daredevil in Marvel comics canon.Spider-Man: No Way Homeis to be released in theaters next month, and while the film will feature magic and otherworldly adventures, Spider-Man is Marvel’s premier street-level superhero (after all, he is sometimes referred to as ‘Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man’).
Daredevil is a character that could fit seamlessly into stories about espionage, injustices, family, and the dark arts. It is just a matter of if Marvel Studios and mastermind Kevin Feige want to use the Man Without Fear at some point in the near future.
Bring Together The Defenders in the MCU
Marvel just introduced alesser-known superhero team in The Eternalsto the silver screen. There are rumors that The Thunderbolts, The Young Avengers, and The Dark Avengers could all be making their way into multimedia Marvel properties in the near future.
While The Defenders were recently on the small screen courtesy of Netflix, they deserve to be interacting with the likes of The Avengers in big-screen exploits. At various points in the comics, each member of Netflix’sThe Defendersis a member of The Avengers, after all. For a cinematic universe that has so many adventures in New York City, it needs a relatable street-level team to make the world all the more fun and believable.
Daredevil and Spirituality
Somewhat ironically, Daredevil is one of the few superheroes in mainstream comics who wears his religion on his sleeve. The Devil of Hell’s Kitchen is a devout Irish Catholic and is often depicted as navel-gazing atop a Church.
After the events ofWandaVision, audiences can expect a lot more magic and supernatural events to occur in the MCU. While fan theories about Mephisto (Marvel’s quasi-stand-in for the Devil) did not come to fruition, there are still rumors about his potential appearance down the line. If Marvel decides to make Hell a real place in the MCU, Daredevil is a perfect character to help introduce it in some sort of team-up adventure. This would be particularly powerful if Marvel decides to resurrect certain superheroes or supervillains in the near future.
Peter Parker Needs a New Mentor
With Iron Man’s death and departure from the MCU, Peter Parker (Spider-Man) is in need of a new super-mentor. While the marketing forSpider-Man: No Way Homeleads the audience to believe that this will be The Sorcerer Supreme Doctor Strange, this could be a clever ruse by Marvel Studios. It made sense for Iron Man to be MCU Spider-Man’s mentor given his access to fortune and technology. However, a teenage, street-level superhero and a sorcerer make for an odd mentor-mentee pairing.
Daredevil has been rumoredto be inSpider-Man: No Way Homefor some time. After all, alter-ego Matt Murdock is a lawyer in Marvel comics. Peter Parker is interrogated in a police station during one scene inSpider-Man: No Way Home’s trailer. There is plenty of reason to speculate that Matt Murdock is the man who will take his case and help Peter after the events of 2019’sSpider-Man: Far From Home. Given his finely-tuned senses, Matt can probably deduce that Peter is truly Spider-Man and also not a murderer. The two characters share a lot of time together in Marvel comics pages, and it would be nothing short of spectacular to see them traverse the New York City skyline in tandem.
Daredevil has the Best Rogue’s Gallery in Marvel Comics After Spider-Man
While Daredevil does not have the same mass acclaim as Spider-Man, he boasts a large and robust rogue’s gallery. His archnemesis is The Kingpin, who was masterfully portrayed by Vincent D’Onofrio on Netflix. However, supervillains and anti-heroes such as Elektra, Bullseye, Typhoid Mary, and others could work phenomenally well in a future Marvel television show or movie. A project featuring Daredevil’s rogues would have to be somewhat dark and ground-level, not dissimilar to what audiences were privy to in the events ofThe Falcon and The Winter Soldier.
In Marvel comics, Daredevil is the most acclaimed solo superhero who is based in Manhattan. He is somewhat akin to Marvel’s answer to Batman: a mere man who operates at night in dark alleys and uses criminals’ fear of him as a weapon.Marvel would be wise to utilize Daredevilin such a way in an upcoming project.
