Daredevil: Born Again’s MCU Cameo Rule Is a Good Thing, Even if It Disappoints Marvel Fans

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I was really excited to hear what the showrunner, Dario Scardapane, shared about Daredevil: Born Again. It sounds like they’re intentionally keeping the worlds separate, which I think is a good thing! We saw a lot of familiar faces from the old Netflix Daredevil series return – Kingpin, Punisher, Karen Page, Foggy, Vanessa, and Bullseye were all great. But even though Charlie Cox’s Daredevil has popped up in things like She-Hulk and Spider-Man: No Way Home, no one from the main MCU movies appeared in his show. And apparently, that’s going to continue for future seasons of the street-level Marvel series on Disney+.

So, I recently heard from Christopher Scardapane about what we can expect from the Daredevil: Born Again series, and it sounds like they’re intentionally keeping things grounded. He made it clear this won’t be a show relying on cameos from the big-screen Avengers or other MCU heroes. Instead, they’re building a separate, street-level world. The team jokingly refers to it as a ‘downtown’ vibe, distinct from the ‘uptown’ action happening in the wider MCU. Basically, they’re focused on telling a very New York, very Hell’s Kitchen story, and keeping that world self-contained.

Daredevil: Born Again Should Avoid MCU Storylines

This is a fantastic approach that all of Disney+’s grounded, street-level shows should adopt. It’s a key reason why the Netflix ‘Defenders’ series are still so popular – fans could easily follow those heroes and their world without needing to watch a lot of other content (over 20 movies and almost 20 Disney+ shows!). Knowing what happens in the Daredevil series is all you really need to enjoy this.

Daredevil’s appearance on She-Hulk: Attorney at Law didn’t connect to the story of the Daredevil: Born Again series. Also, She-Hulk was a separate Disney+ show and didn’t contribute to the larger, ongoing plot of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films. Don’t anticipate seeing characters like Hulk pop up in Disney+ shows again, even though She-Hulk wasn’t focused on smaller-scale, street-level stories. Hawkeye introduced characters like Yelena Belova and Swordsman (who later appeared in Daredevil: Born Again), but these kinds of crossovers won’t be as common going forward.

When Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD aired on ABC, it was initially linked to the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe. The show brought back Agent Coulson after he seemingly died in The Avengers and even connected to the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, including the conflict with Hydra. However, these connections ultimately hindered the show’s creative freedom. Later Marvel series, like Hawkeye and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, faced similar issues when tying into the main MCU storyline—though Hawkeye was strong enough to overcome this. Agents of SHIELD really found its footing when it stopped being directly connected to the MCU. Now, it seems like the upcoming Daredevil: Born Again is following the same path, suggesting that the series will benefit from a bit of independence.

Disney+ Heroes Can Still Show Up in the MCU Movies

Okay, here’s the deal with Marvel’s street-level heroes. I was a little worried about the Daredevil: Born Again situation, but it seems like that show’s focus on a more contained world doesn’t lock Daredevil out of the bigger MCU movies. Just because we won’t see characters like Captain America or Shang-Chi popping up in Born Again doesn’t mean Daredevil is barred from appearing in, say, an Avengers film. Marvel’s already proven they can go both ways – the Punisher’s cameo in Spider-Man: Brand New Day showed us that. As Dario Scardapane put it, these characters can take little trips into the larger Marvel universe, but the stories they’re telling are intentionally focused and detailed.

This opens the door for Daredevil to appear in a team-up movie like Avengers: Secret Wars, alongside other heroes and villains. It also means characters like Kingpin could appear in films to create conflict. This is a good thing for fans of the Disney+ shows, as it allows those characters to make an impact in the movies. Importantly, this doesn’t work in reverse – viewers won’t need to have watched the shows to understand who these characters are when they appear in films, keeping the series accessible.

Currently, this seems to apply only to street-level heroes like Daredevil, Punisher, Jessica Jones, and White Tiger. It likely won’t include characters like Kate Bishop’s Hawkeye, especially since Ms. Marvel already had a dedicated movie, appearing alongside Captain Marvel and Monica Rambeau in Marvels. Ultimately, this could actually benefit shows like Daredevil: Born Again while maintaining the special feel of the MCU films.

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2026-02-26 23:14