Daredevil’s MCU Future: Phase 4 Movies And Shows Charlie Cox Can Return In

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Hawkeye episodes 2 & 3!

Following three successful seasons of Daredevil on Netflix, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige confirmed that Charlie Cox will reprise his role as the man without fear if Daredevil was to join the MCU’s Phase 4, opening the door for Cox to appear in multiple upcoming projects. While doing the press rounds for the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home, Feige finally confirmed Cox would play Daredevil in the MCU. Although this long-awaited confirmation was very well received, Feige deliberately left out the specifics of Charlie Cox’s return to the role, especially regarding which projects he might show up in.

Charlie Cox first played Daredevil in 2015 with the release of Daredevil season 1 on Netflix, and continued to bring his talents to the role for 3 years, across 2 additional seasons of Daredevil and one season of The Defenders crossover show. Cox’s portrayal of the “Devil of Hell’s Kitchen” resonated with fans, as he was able to portray both the relatable Matt Murdoch and the gruesome Daredevil to a very high standard. This led to fans demanding that Charlie Cox reprise his role as Matt Murdoch in the main MCU ever since the cancellation of his Netlfix show back in November 2018, going as far as creating a petition on change.org that amassed over 400,00 signatures.

Feige’s Confirmation that Charlie Cox will be reprising his role came as a pleasant surprise for fans, and now that Marvel Studios can legally include Daredevil in their upcoming projects, audiences have been wondering where Matt Murdoch could show up first. Rumors suggest that Matt Murdoch’s MCU introduction is imminent, while other sources claim that Daredevil will not join the MCU until late 2022. Whatever the case may be, fans of the character know that Daredevil and his alter-ego Mathew Murdoch could appear in most Phase 4 projects in some capacity, however, five announced projects stand out as perfect fits for the character, and an additional unannounced project starring Daredevil could already be in Marvel Studios plans.

Spider-Man: No Way Home

The first project that could feature Draedevil’s MCU debut is the highly anticipated Spider-Man: No Way Home. Rumors of Matt Murdoch’s appearance in the Spider-Man threequel precede those of Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire’s. However, it is widely believed that even if Charlie Cox is in No Way Home, he will only play the role of Peter Parker’s attorney to help him deal with the exposure of his secret identity, and won’t be suiting up in the iconic red costume.

Cox has been questioned about his involvement in the Spider-Man movie on various occasions by fans and press alike, but has always avoided giving a clear answer by claiming that he does not know whether he’s in the movie, and that he would not want to spoil it if he indeed is. Fans of the comics know that Spider-Man and Daredevil have joined forces multiple times, often to thwart evil schemes conceived by the Kingpin. Introducing Matt Murdoch as Parker’s lawyer would be a great way to set up his appearance in She-Hulk, the Disney+ show set to follow another law-practicing Marvel superhero.

Moon Knight

Moon Knight is confirmed to premiere on Disney+ in 2022 and will follow Marc Spector, a violent vigilante who blurs the line between hero and villain. Having Daredevil show up at some point in the series would make perfect sense to fans of both characters, given that both heroes are usually up against the same foes, and both are based in Manhattan. Additionally, the Moon Knight teaser shown on Disney+ Day contained some brutal imagery of Moon Knight bloodying a random thug, which fans immediately noticed were reminiscent of the gruesome action in the Daredevil series. Whether this creative resemblance is due to the similar combat styles of both characters, or a hint towards Daredevil playing a role in the series, remains to be seen.

She-Hulk

While the most likely project to feature Daredevil suiting up is further down the list, She-Hulk is the prime candidate to show Matt in the courtroom. Jennifer Walters, a.k.a She-Hulk, is also a law-practicing superhero that she specializes in cases involving super-powered individuals. Jennifer Walters could well go head-to-head with Matt during the series, possibly pertaining to a plotline that will be initiated in No Way Home and built upon throughout Phase 4, such as the U.N. forcing Peter Parker to sign the Sokovia Accords.

Blade

Blade is one of the most anticipated movies of Marvel’s Phase 4, set to star Mahershala Ali as the vampire-hunting hero. Blade and Daredevil have joined forces many times in the source material since they both share a brutal and bloody aesthetic. Blade, along with the Moon Knight series, could begin to set up the MCU version of the Midnight Sons, a branch of the Avengers that includes Daredevil and is concerned with dark and mystical threats. Daredevil cameoing in both Blade and Moon Knight could be the beginning of the formation of that team.

Echo

Maya Lopez, or Echo, just made her MCU debut in Hawkeye episode 2, and already has her spinoff series confirmed for Diseny+. Daredevil plays a major role in Echo’s origin in the comics, which is also tied to Daredevil’s arch-nemesis, Wilson Fisk. In the comics, Maya’s first real mission as Echo was assassinating Daredevil, unbeknownst to her was that under the horned mask was none other than Matt Murdoch, her love interest at the time.

Echo teams up with Matt Murdoch to take down the Kingpin instead, which is looking more likely to be the actual plot of the Echo Series. Vincent D’Onofrio has also been heavily teased to reprise his role as Fisk in Hawkeye episode 3, during flashback scenes that seem to be referencing Maya Lopez’s Comic Origin. The Echo series is the most likely project to feature Daredevil donning the iconic red suit, given that the most popular Echo story heavily features Daredevil in combat.

Marvel Studios Daredevil Project

Barring the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, Daredevil is possibly the most popular Marvel character yet to join the MCU. A Marvel Studios produced Daredevil project starring Charlie Cox is bound to please viewers and have mass appeal at the same time, be it a movie or a Disney+ series. Fans of the character are already expecting a Daredevil project announcement as soon as the character makes his MCU debut, whenever that may be.

Kevin Feige’s confirmation that Charlie Cox will play Daredevil in the MCU was a long-awaited one, and it begs the question of whether the same will apply to other fan-favorite performances like Jon Bernthal’s Punisher. Which characters Marvel Studios decide to move over to the MCU from the Netflix shows remains to be seen, but the Charlie Cox confirmation leaves the door open for the other Defenders to join the fray. Fans have been eagerly waiting to see Daredevil in action in an MCU project, and while no official confirmation has been made as to when that will happen, they can look forward to Spider-Man: No Way Home as their first possibility of seeing Charlie Cox back as the man without fear following his successful Daredevil debut.