Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio, who portrayed classic Marvel Comics characters Daredevil and The Kingpin, have joined the upcoming Marvel ‘Echo’ the Disney+ series, which stars Hawkeye breakout Alaqua Cox as Maya Lopez. The series is currently filming in Atlanta.
The move is the latest sign of Marvel Studios’ efforts to weave in popular characters from Netflix’s now-defunct Marvel shows such as Daredevil into the fold. Sources say Echo will include a plotline in which Daredevil, whose alter ego is blind attorney Matt Murdoch, is searching out a former ally. Podcast The Weekly Planet has reported that ally is Jessica Jones, another Marvel character who toplined her own Netflix series and was played by Krysten Ritter.
Cox starred in Daredevil as Matt Murdock in three seasons from 2015-18, and the 2017 team-up series The Defenders, while D’Onofrio played arch enemy Wilson Fisk/Kingpin in Daredevil‘s first and third seasons. The duo became fan favorites for what a superhero-villain conflict could look like on TV. Netflix, which had a pact with Disney to produce Marvel projects, canceled Daredevil in 2018, Disney prepared to launch its own competitor streaming service, Disney+.
Per the studio, Echo follows Maya Lopez (Cox), as her life in New York as a gang leader catches up with her and she returns to her hometown to reconnect with her Native American roots. She already has tangled with Kingpin in a fight in the Hawkeye finale after learning he was responsible for the death of her beloved uncle, William Lopez (Zahn McClarnon). McClarnon reprises his role, with other castmembers including Chaske Spencer, Tantoo Cardinal, Devery Jacobs, Cody Lightning and Graham Greene. Sydney Freeland and Catriona McKenzie direct episodes with Marion Dayre serving as head writer. The series is expected to bow in 2023.
Cox told THR in February he longed to reunite with D’Onofrio onscreen: “I am imagining, I am hoping, that our worlds will collide again because the stuff we’ve done in the past was tremendous fun to do, and he’s such an incredible actor.” D’Onofrio, meanwhile, revealed to THR in December that he and Cox remain close, and have had two-hour conversations about their MCU returns.
Cox is repped by UTA, Range Media Partners and United Agents in the U.K. D’Onofrio is repped by UTA, Silver Lining Entertainment and Hansen Jacobson.
