Daredevil: Born Again Originally Planned a Punisher and Echo Episode Where The Two 'Spend an Interesting Night Together'

Daredevil: Born Again was erstwhile acceptable to see a peculiar occurrence centered connected the Punisher and Echo, earlier Marvel's plans for the bid underwent a extremist rework.

Much has already been written of Marvel's melodramatic determination to reboot the Disney+ bid mid-way done filming of its archetypal season. Originally conceived arsenic a caller commencement for lawyer vigilante Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) and arch rival Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio), Marvel yet decided to rework what had already been changeable into a much nonstop continuation of the fan-favorite Netflix Daredevil series.

This retooling saw a caller aviator and play finale filmed, with further scenes added featuring much characters from the Netflix show. At the aforesaid time, elements featuring newer characters were fixed much of a backseat — and successful this vein, Marvel pulled backmost connected a planned "bottle episode" featuring Alaqua Cox's Echo gathering Jon Bernthal's Punisher.

"They were looking to bash a benignant of singular vessel occurrence astir the Punisher crossing into the Daredevil space," Daredevil: Born Again writer Jesse Wigutow revealed to IGN. "This was two, 3 years ago, and 1 happening led to another, and I came successful to mostly absorption connected that.

"It progressive the Punisher and Echo benignant of spending an absorbing nighttime unneurotic — not romantically, but narratively," helium teased, earlier acknowledging the thought yet "fell away."

"Who knows, possibly it comes backmost again," helium continued. "But the communicative has been a small benignant of crooked successful presumption of the development, and it was portion of a erstwhile idea."

While Punisher is simply a seasoned of Marvel's Netflix era, Echo lone joined the MCU much recently. Having archetypal appeared successful the Disney+ Hawkeye bid arsenic Fisk's newly-revealed adoptive niece, Marvel expanded her quality successful a afloat Echo spinoff — a amusement that besides went done a play of originative re-development earlier it was yet released.

Now, Marvel's plans for the quality of Echo stay unclear, with lone the briefest of mentions fixed successful Daredevil: Born Again's archetypal season. Punisher, however, volition adjacent beryllium seen successful a recently-filmed Disney+ TV peculiar that's owed to aerial adjacent year, up of the character's call-up to the large surface for an quality successful Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Alaqua Cox arsenic Echo. Image credit: Chuck Zlotnick/Marvel Studios.

"I deliberation I'm not speaking retired of crook successful saying that determination was an effort to marque the amusement precise abstracted from the Netflix [series] and benignant of a caller concept," Wigutow said, discussing Marvel's large Daredevil pivot. "I consciousness similar immoderate of that worked well, and immoderate of it didn't. And determination were expectations that weren't needfully being met, and determination was a pointed effort and a near crook — to not needfully instrumentality to Netflix, but grant the Netflix root of the show. It is meant to beryllium much aligned with the Netflix amusement now."

Despite his Punisher and Echo occurrence falling by the wayside, Wigutow said helium remained adjacent to the show's improvement and has gone connected to constitute for its upcoming 2nd season, which is owed to aerial connected Disney+ successful March 2026.

"I evidently can't accidental precise much," Wigutow said of Daredevil: Born Again's sophomore run, "but it's a precise large muscular play that revolves astir Fisk successful bureau arsenic mayor. There's a batch of governmental intrigue and palace intrigue.

"What I deliberation is truly awesome astir the play is that ultimately... [we have] each these moving pieces and this large benignant of canvas of New York City, but astatine the extremity of the day, it's astir these 2 characters that you attraction astir most, astir the 2 face-to-face successful a playground. That's the idea. They hatred each other, but they request each other. And however bash they get done that? That's yet what it each comes down to. And I deliberation we did a truly amusive occupation of delivering that."

As IGN exclusively reported past month, Daredevil: Born Again volition besides instrumentality for a 3rd play — which Wigutow confirmed helium would beryllium heading backmost into the writer's country "next week" to statesman moving on.

Next week volition meantime spot the motorboat of Wigutow's different large Disney project, Tron: Ares, which IGN besides chatted to him astir successful detail. Read connected present for Wigutow's thoughts connected AI, ditching the franchise's emblematic machine setting, and reviving the sci-fi saga without the payment of being capable to trust connected memorable characters specified arsenic Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker.

Image credit: Chuck Zlotnick/Marvel Studios.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social