Daredevil Showrunner Steven DeKnight Addresses Unfavorable Comparisons To Daredevil Born Again: "We Didn’t Have The Money To Do This"

Netflix’s Daredevil set the tone for that corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, making comparisons between it and the sequel series Daredevil: Born Again inevitable. Even so, Daredevil showrunner Steven DeKnight rushed to the defense of the older series when a fan called out its stuntwork. Both shows star Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock/Daredevil and Vincent D’Onofrio as Wilson Fisk/Kingpin, and they also feature elaborate, violent fight scenes. This trend started with the now-infamous one-shot sequence in which Matt takes out a hallway of goons who kidnapped a child. It was equally brutal and memorable.

Since then, each subsequent Daredevil season has put a new spin on the concept, as did Daredevil: Born Again. However, the revival, having a higher budget and more technical resources, incorporated more intricate stunts augmented by CGI.

Some audience members have expressed their excitement over these changes, making Daredevil’s skillset more similar to his in the comics. One such fan, @theogdaredevil, tweeted: “crazy how Daredevil started becoming more agile and acrobatic/moving more like comic daredevil ever since he got into the [MCU]. ([please don’t] twist my words. [I] know [he’s] canon in the [MCU], but [you] know exactly what [I] mean when [I] say [MCU].) ” They also included a compilation of fight scenes to illustrate their point.

This caught DeKnight’s attention, who explained the difference was “purely a financial issue.” He then added: “On the Netflix show, we didn’t have the money to do this. If we had, we would have.“

In order to understand the disparities in how Matt’s abilities are depicted, it is important to note the shows’ respective budgets. Per Comic Book Resources, Daredevil had a single-season budget of $56 million, and Daredevil: Born Again has a budget of around $200 million. To break that down further, Daredevil’s 13 episodes would cost $4.3 million each, while Daredevil: Born Again’s 9 would cost roughly $22.2 million.

“90% Of Our Sequences Are Practical:” Charlie Cox Praises Daredevil: Born Again’s Combination Of Visual Effects And Stunt Work To Make Daredevil More Comic-Accurate

Charlie Cox confirms the extent of Daredevil: Born Again’s CGI in the MCU series’ action sequences and explains how its fight choreography works.

With that disparity in mind, it makes sense that Daredevil: Born Again would have more capital to produce its fight scenes. As a result, there are bound to be some differences between the series. Chiefly, Daredevil has more visceral stunts, while those of Daredevil: Born Again are smoother. Stylistically, the latter attempts to recreate what its predecessor did to varying results.

Daredevil ready for his hallway fight in Daredevil season 1

Ultimately, whatever style a viewer prefers is up to personal preference. However, DeKnight is likely correct that the lower budget of Daredevil impeded its ability to depict more comic-accurate fights, as they were required to work within what they could achieve with practical effects. Nonetheless, the series managed; as the hallway scene exemplifies, sometimes limitations can lead to increased creativity.