The MCU's Daredevil Needs To Move On From Kingpin

After his surprise appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Matt Murdock a.k.a. Daredevil (Charlie Cox) is properly joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe with his own TV series, but Marvel needs to move on from his archenemy, the Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio). The MCU’s Multiverse Saga has allowed Marvel to bring back characters from other movies and TV shows and make them part of the MCU, and one of the most exciting returns is that of Daredevil, especially after his Netflix Marvel TV series left the audience wanting more.

Following his brief appearance in No Way Home, Daredevil returned in the TV series She-Hulk, and he’s coming back in the TV series Echo before starring in his own, titled Daredevil: Born Again. Naturally, there’s already a lot of speculation about what his story in the MCU will be about and who he will fight, more so as the MCU has also brought his archenemy, the Kingpin, back. The villain made his MCU debut in the TV series Hawkeye, and while he will also return in Echo and Daredevil: Born Again, the latter needs to move on from him and explore other sides of Daredevil’s history.

Daredevil Has Had Three Seasons With Kingpin

As Daredevil’s main enemy, the Kingpin was used as the villain in the 2003 movie Daredevil (played by Michael Clarke Duncan) and he was brought back in the Netflix’s Marvel TV series of the same name. This version of the character initially lacked self-confidence and didn’t take the moniker of Kingpin until later. Wilson Fisk led his crime family in taking over Hell’s Kitchen, while also maintaining a presentable public image. Fisk’s rivalry with Daredevil began when Murdock helped the FBI arrest his associates and he was later beaten in combat by Daredevil, after which was arrested and imprisoned at Ryker’s Island. Kingpin had a confrontation with Murdock in prison in Daredevil season 2, raising his suspicions about Murdock and Daredevil being the same, and he got out of prison in season 3 after becoming an informant for the FBI. Fisk tried to regain his position in the criminal underworld and manipulated those around him to get what he wanted, but he was ultimately defeated by Daredevil one more time and was arrested again.

Kingpin was brought back in Hawkeye, showing he has rebuilt his empire, and while he can still be a villain in the MCU – and a more grounded one than the many other bad guys with superpowers and more –, he shouldn’t continue being Daredevil’s main enemy, as they already spent three seasons fighting each other, and their story together was engaging and interesting enough as it was.

MCU Daredevil Needs His Own Identity

While the debate over whether Netflix’s Marvel shows are now MCU canon or not continues, Daredevil is coming back with his own TV show, Daredevil: Born Again. It’s still unknown how much it will reference the previous TV series or if it will only be loosely canon, but what’s true is that Marvel has to make Daredevil’s new series its own thing. A lot of time has passed between Daredevil season 3 and Murdock’s introduction to the MCU, so the MCU has many questions to answer about his place in this connected universe – and because of that, it would be best if Born Again isn’t a continuation or retread of the Netflix series. Making the Kingpin the main villain in Born Again one more time would inevitably create links to the previous show and raise more questions about how the Netflix series fits the MCU, potentially clashing with the events of this universe and creating even more plot holes.

Daredevil Has Other Villains That Deserve The Spotlight

Daredevil needing to move on from Kingpin doesn’t mean that he will be left with no interesting villains to fight against. Other big villains from Daredevil's comic book history are Bullseye (who appeared in Daredevil season 3 under the name of Benjamin “Dex” Poindexter), a psychopathic assassin with a personal vendetta against Daredevil, and the Hand, an order of evil mystical ninjas involved in organized crime and mercenary activities that also appeared in Netflix’s Daredevil.

The MCU could also go for villains like Typhoid Mary (who appeared in Iron Fist) and Mister Fear, but it could also use other street-level villains not necessarily tied to Daredevil, such as Hammerhead and Mr. Negative, both usually depicted as enemies of Spider-Man, which could, in turn, lead the way to a Daredevil/Spider-Man team up in the near future. There are many options Marvel can explore for Daredevil’s return that don’t include Kingpin, and while they will surely cross paths again at some point, they don’t have to depend on each other, and Marvel can develop their stories in other ways that the Netflix show couldn’t.

Next: No Way Home Theory Reveals Aunt May & Daredevil's Secret History