Is 'Daredevil' canon in MCU? Exploring possibilities of Wilson Fisk (Kingpin) and Matt Murdock's return

This article contains spoilers for Hawkeye and Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Marvel played their cards close to their chest with Daredevil-villain Wilson Fisk's appearance in the last two episodes of their Disney+ Hawkeye series. Even after being featured in the finale episode as one of the primary antagonists, Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin never established any connection with his previous outing as the character in Netflix's Daredevil series.

Meanwhile, Charlie Cox's surprise appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home also left fans with questions over whether the MCU series is canon in the MCU. To make things more confusing, Marvel fans are yet to receive a proper explanation about what is going on with the multiverse after Loki Season 1 and NWH.

The upcoming Hawkeye spinoff series, Echo, featuring Maya Lopez, could bring some answers. However, it is likely that Doctor Strange 2: Multiverse of Madness will have more hints explaining multiversal collision and its aftermath.

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Is Charlie Cox's Daredevil from the Netflix/Marvel series canon to MCU?

While the original series was canceled in 2018, it contained multiple references to MCU events in the past. These references included the Harlem fight between Hulk and Abomination, the 2012 Chitauri invasion in New York, and Thor's arrival.

However, at the same time, it did not refer to events like Thanos' snap. It is believed that Thanos snapped half of the MCU's population in the spring of 2018, but Daredevil Season 3 reportedly took place in the fall of 2018.

Since Charlie Cox showed up in Spider-Man: No Way Home, it is inevitable that this variant must have known about both the snap and the blip in MCU. This can hint that Marvel would explain the return of these characters by labeling them as variants of the ones from the Marvel/Netflix series.

This would allow Kevin Fiege to cherry-pick some of the heroes from the canceled shows while leaving out the less popular ones. Furthermore, if Marvel goes this route, the studio would not have to explain the lack of The Defenders presence during and after the snap.

So, the most likely scenario would be that Marvel would classify all the characters from the Netflix series as versions of the ones set to show up in MCU. In October, trusted MCU insider Daniel Richtman reported that Marvel is looking forward to soft-rebooting the Daredevil series with the same cast.

It is plausible that future projects with Daredevil could establish the original series' characters as alternate reality versions who had similar origins in the MCU.

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When will Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock/Daredevil and Vincent D'Onofrio's Wilson Fisk/Kingpin show up in MCU again?

Earlier this month, Marvel head Kevin Feige spoke with Cinemablend and said:

"If you were to see Daredevil in upcoming things, Charlie Cox, yes, would be the actor playing Daredevil. Where we see that, how we see that, when we see that, remains to be seen."

As per some recent rumors, Daredevil is expected to appear in the upcoming She-Hulk Disney+ series as the lawyer Matt Murdock and the 'Devil of Hell's Kitchen.' The character is also likely to appear in the forthcoming series featuring Maya Lopez.

Meanwhile, as evidenced by the Hawkeye series' ending, Kingpin is highly likely to appear in the Echo series. Furthermore, both characters could show up in their Daredevil series in the future, as reported by Daniel Richtman.

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This article reflects the opinions of the writer.