'Daredevil: Born Again' actors Charlie Cox, Vincent D'Onofrio talk 'seismic' Season 2

Brendan Morrow, USA TODAYFri, March 20, 2026 at 11:01 AM UTC

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Thinking about Matt Murdock's epic, decade-long rivalry with archenemy Wilson Fisk on the Marvel series "Daredevil: Born Again" gives Charlie Cox flashbacks to childhood.

"Do you remember when you were losing your baby teeth, and there was one tooth that was wobbly for what seemed like a decade, and it just wouldn't leave?" Cox says. "It was just a constant irritation and a pain in your mouth, and it wouldn't go. That's how Matt feels about Wilson Fisk. He's embedded himself in him, and he can't rid himself of this person."

The feeling is mutual for Vincent D'Onofrio's Fisk, though the actor draws a tastier comparison: Fisk looks at Matt like a piece of corn stuck in his teeth. "It's so annoying," D'Onofrio quips.

Cox and D'Onofrio know the dynamic inside and out after playing their respective roles of Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer who moonlights as the vigilante Daredevil, and Wilson Fisk, a crime boss known as Kingpin, since the original Netflix show premiered in 2015. But the Disney+ revival "Born Again" shook up the status quo in a big way at the end of last season by having Fisk, now the mayor of New York City, institute martial law and outlaw vigilantism.

Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) leads a resistance against Mayor Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio) in the new season of "Daredevil: Born Again."

This tees up a sophomore season, premiering March 24, all about the resistance against Fisk, as Matt and his allies fight from underground.

The storyline turned out to be more timely than the show's writers anticipated. Scenes in Season 2 depicting Fisk's Anti-Vigilante Task Force conducting raids are reminiscent of images of the Trump administration's immigration enforcement actions of recent months, despite being conceived and filmed prior.

"We tried to build the story of a rise to power and a resistance, and we weren't really looking at the headlines as much as we were looking into history," showrunner Dario Scardapane says. "Now, did we know that the imagery that we shot was going to be on the news two months ago? No. It's humbling. It's chilling. You take no pleasure in that."

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Matt spent much of the first season of "Born Again" rejecting his Daredevil persona, but in Season 2, the tables are turned. Now, Matt is considered a missing person after an attack on his apartment, so he is no longer able to move through the world as an ordinary lawyer and is effectively forced to be Daredevil all the time. In one Season 2 scene, Matt's ally Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll) asks if he ever misses "being Matt Murdock," a poignant moment Cox says was meant to evoke the ending of "The Graduate."

Matt Murdock gets a new suit in "Daredevil: Born Again" Season 2, which sees the character fully embrace his Daredevil persona.

"It's a fun thing to embody Daredevil fully, and almost forget who Matt Murdock is, and what he is, and how he operates," Cox says. Less fun was the fact that this required the actor to wear his Daredevil suit in almost every scene. "From a practical point of view, it's immensely difficult," he says.

Matt's full embodiment of Daredevil parallels with Fisk embracing his true, brutal nature as Kingpin. "These two characters were in denial of who they were in that first season – in denial or pretending," says executive producer Sana Amanat. Now, "they're finally wearing their suits," both literally and figuratively.

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"Born Again" Season 1 shocked fans from the first scene by killing Matt's best friend Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson), a stunning twist that continues to reverberate. The new episodes show more of Matt's struggle with grief and PTSD, and the trailers have revealed Henson will make an appearance in Season 2.

"[Matt] will never be the same again," Cox says. "There will not be a day that goes by that he does not think of him and think of it. From an acting point of view, that's weirdly kind of a dream, because it just gives it so much texture."

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The show can get quite heavy, but bringing some comedic relief will be Krysten Ritter, who's finally back as Jessica Jones for the first time since Netflix's eponymous series ended in 2019. Cox praises the actress for bringing "so much energy and enthusiasm and ideas and excitement" to set and says her return was "long overdue."

Krysten Ritter's Jessica Jones, left, makes a long-awaited return to the Marvel universe in Season 2 of "Daredevil: Born Again.".

"Daredevil" once seemed dead for good after Netflix canceled the original show in 2018. But things are moving full steam ahead on "Born Again," with a third season already in the works. Once fans see the ending of Season 2, they "will know exactly where Season 3 is going," Scardapane teases, adding the writers were inspired by a particular run in the comics.

With knowledge of what's in store, Cox and D'Onofrio dance around spoilers but reveal the show is building to some massive plot points that initially gave them pause.

"There's a pitch that was presented to both of us that is seismic, that we can't talk about," Cox says. "It's something that the show escalates towards, that I was equally excited about and excited to explore, and also concerned by because it's something that, if not handled appropriately, could not be good. It's a big, bold story point. I believe, and I hope, that it's been handled really well."

Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio) meets with Mr. Charles (Matthew Lillard) in the second season of "Daredevil: Born Again."

D'Onofrio assures fans the story Cox refers to is well executed, but notes the costars talked through their anxiety about it. "We worry about everything," he says.

This points to the collaborative nature of the actors' relationship, which Cox argues is a big part of the show's success. After playing characters who can't stand each other for more than a decade, the bond between the pair has only grown stronger.

"We've become really good friends," D'Onofrio says. "We get along great, and we have very similar opinions about the story we're telling. We talk constantly. I guess it's going to be one of those things where I don't think I'm going to have a better relationship with another actor."

"I was about to say the same thing," Cox agrees. "We've probably ruined it going forward."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Daredevil: Born Again' cast talks 'chilling' Season 2

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