Charlie Cox first stole audiences’ hearts in 2015 when he made his Marvel debut in the Netflix series, Daredevil. His interpretation of the role was so well-received that Marvel decided to integrate him into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The initial Daredevil series was abruptly canceled after three seasons despite receiving very positive reviews and high viewership. Given that Netflix is a separate entity from Disney, which owns the MCU, many thought that the end of Daredevil spelled the end of Cox’s iconic stint as the hero.
However, Disney ended up regaining the licensing for Netflix’s Marvel TV shows and quickly began working on bringing back fan-favorite Cox. In 2021, Cox’s Daredevil made his official MCU debut in Spider-Man: No Way Home. He appeared in a cameo outside of his Daredevil suit as Matt Murdock, the lawyer representing Peter Parker (Tom Holland), after his identity as Spider-Man was leaked to the world. Of course, once Daredevil made his official transition to the MCU, Disney decided to capitalize on his character.
During the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, it was revealed that Daredevil is getting his own MCU Disney+ original series, Daredevil: Born Again. Around the same time as this exciting announcement, Daredevil was confirmed to be making a significant MCU debut in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. As promised, Cox appeared in the series in his comic book-accurate yellow suit and embarked on a whirlwind relationship with She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany), after facing off against her in court. His appearance in the show only served to further raise anticipation for his solo series.
Is Daredevil: Born Again rated TV-MA?
Few details about Daredevil: Born Again have been revealed, aside from the fact that Cox’s Daredevil and Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin will be reprising their roles for their series. Additionally, it has also been confirmed that Daredevil: Born Again will not be a direct sequel to Daredevil and will instead feature its own story. With that being said, though, Daredevil still does provide the reboot with a blueprint as it showed what elements of the hero worked well and which didn’t.
One thing that worked particularly well with Daredevil, was its dark tone. Daredevil was violent, gritty, and more realistic than the Disney+ MCU shows we’ve become accustomed to seeing. The maturity of the series resulted in Daredevil receiving a TV-MA rating. Now, Daredevil: Born Again is allegedly seeking to receive a similar rating. The rumor was sparked by Marvel insider, Daniel Ritchman, who responded to a fan’s question about Daredevil: Born Again with a confirmation that series would “likely” be rated TV-MA.
If Disney+ does decide to go through with a TV-MA rating, it would likely prove successful. Given the success of Daredevil, it would be risky for Disney+ to deviate from all the things that made it popular, including its grit. Plus, Disney+ has been tentatively exploring the R and TV-MA ratings by introducing the Deadpool film series and Logan to the streaming platform. Meanwhile, the upcoming animated series, Marvel Zombies, is also slated to be a TV-MA series. Disney+ is slowly incorporating more mature content into its platform and Daredevil: Born Again is one series that could truly benefit from this exploration.
(Featured image: Netflix)
