'Daredevil: Born Again' Showrunner Compares Show To Netflix Series: There's "A Lot Less Navel-Gazing"
Dario Scardapane, the showrunner for Marvel Studios’ upcoming Daredevil: Born Again series recently compared the series to the original Netflix series as well as HBO’s recent Penguin series.
Speaking with SFX Magazine via GamesRadar, Scardapane first compared his show to the previous Netflix series. He said, “There is more fun in the moments with these characters and a lot less navel-gazing than before.”
“The earlier show, at its best, was fantastic. At its worst, it was two characters in a room talking about what a hero is,” he elaborated. “I felt that had been done. I'm not taking swipes. I just didn't want to hear characters grousing about their lot in life. I wanted to see them doing things.”
READ: 'Captain America: Brave New World' Box Office Expectations Already In Decline
He specifically pointed to the the slow pacing in the Netflix series as well as the Punisher, which he worked on.
He shared, “One of our edicts was longer scenes. You had these long five-page scenes of characters hashing it out in order to make space between these massive action sequences. The way stuff has evolved since then, we're able to do big action sequences at a lot more pace.”
Scardapane continued, “I really feel that Netflix's Daredevil, which I know in my blood, was much more noir, and this show is more New York crime story. It has elements of The Sopranos and King Of New York. There's a feeling for those classic '90s crime tales.”
Returning to comment on the pace, he said, “It has a pace and a scope that, for a lot of reasons, Netflix wasn't able to do. They were very dark, cinematically, not necessarily story-wise, although there were some dark elements. We're much darker.”
Given he’s describing the series as more of a New York crime story, he also compared his series to the recently released Penguin show on HBO.
He said, “It's really strange. You work in a vacuum and then something else comes out and you go, 'Oh, wow'. I would say in many ways The Penguin is our direct competition. However, we're even more grounded, even less stylized, even more rooted in the here and now. I loved Penguin. We're a little faster, meaner, cleaner in our storytelling.”
READ: Star Trek: Section 31 Is So Bad It Hurts My Brain
Ironically, the first trailer for the show depicts Matt Murdock seemingly having a long-winded conversation with Wilson Fisk in a diner.
The official description for the series states, “Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox), a blind lawyer with heightened abilities is fighting for justice through his bustling law firm, while former mob boss Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) pursues his own political endeavors in New York. When their past identities begin to emerge, both men find themselves on an inevitable collision course.”
It debuts on Disney+ on March 4, 2025.
What do you make of Scardapane’s comparison to the Netflix series as well as The Penguin?
NEXT: The BBC Hires Transgender Activist Author Of "This Book Is Gay" For Doctor Who Season 2 Writers Room