The first season of Daredevil: Born Again brought Matt Murdock back to Hell’s Kitchen for a brutal new chapter. Premiering on March 4, 2025, and concluding on April 15, 2025, the nine-episode season saw a retired Daredevil pulled back into a fight against a more powerful than ever Wilson Fisk, now the Mayor of New York City. With Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio returning to their iconic roles, the season set the stage for an explosive second chapter coming in 2026.
Season 1 Premiere: A Tragic Attack and a New Status Quo
The season opened with a devastating attack. Matt Murdock, his law partner Foggy Nelson, and their friend Karen Page were celebrating at Josie’s Bar when they were ambushed by Benjamin “Dex” Poindexter, the psychopathic assassin also known as Bullseye. Dex murdered Foggy, sending Matt into a rage. As Daredevil, Matt defeated Dex but then attempted to kill him by throwing him off a roof. This act haunted Matt, leading him to retire his Daredevil identity and stop all vigilante activities.
One year later, Matt had started a new law firm with former district attorney Kirsten McDuffie and had begun a relationship with his therapist, Heather Glenn. Karen Page had moved to San Francisco. Meanwhile, Wilson Fisk, having recovered from injuries sustained in other events, returned to New York and announced he was running for Mayor on a strong anti-vigilante platform. Matt, fearing Fisk’s true motives, confronted the aspiring politician. The two men established a tense truce: Matt promised to stop Fisk if he abused his power, and Fisk warned Matt there would be consequences if he ever put the Daredevil suit back on.
Mayor Fisk Takes Control and a Vigilante Stands Trial
After winning the election, Mayor Fisk began consolidating power. His first major test involved the case of Hector Ayala. Ayala was arrested for murder after trying to break up a fight in a subway station, where a corrupt police officer was accidentally killed by a train. Matt took Ayala’s case, believing his story. However, Matt and his investigator, retired NYPD officer Cherry, soon discovered a critical secret: Ayala was the vigilante White Tiger.
Fisk, using his new platform, publicly denounced vigilantes and vowed to see Ayala convicted. In court, with a key witness intimidated, Matt was forced to reveal Ayala’s secret identity to the jury to prove his character. The strategy worked, and Ayala was found not guilty. Despite Matt’s warnings to stop his vigilantism, Ayala went out on patrol that same night and was murdered by a man wearing the symbol of the Punisher. This event pulled Matt deeper into a growing conspiracy and closer to a confrontation with the real Punisher, Frank Castle.
The Return of Old Allies and the Rise of New Threats
Matt’s investigation into Ayala’s death led him to Frank Castle. Castle challenged Matt’s inaction, accusing him of failing to get proper justice for Foggy’s death. This encounter forced Matt to question his own methods and morality. At the same time, Fisk’s political machinations continued. He faced gang wars in the city and pushback on his key project: rebuilding the Red Hook port. He also dealt with tension in his marriage to Vanessa, who had run his criminal empire in his absence.
A new, grisly threat emerged in the form of Muse, a serial killer using human blood to create public street art. When Ayala’s niece, Angela del Toro, investigated Muse and was kidnapped, Matt was forced to act. He finally put on his Daredevil suit again, rescued Angela, and fought Muse, though the killer escaped. This signaled Matt’s full return to his vigilante life.
The Season Finale: Kingpin Revealed and a Resistance Forms
The season culminated in the finale episode, “Straight to Hell“. A flashback revealed that Vanessa Fisk, not Wilson, was secretly responsible for ordering Foggy Nelson’s murder. She had hired Dex Poindexter to eliminate Foggy as a legal threat to their business. When Vanessa tried to confess to Wilson, he revealed he already knew and did not care. His focus was on his larger plan: using his position as Mayor to turn the Red Hook port into a sovereign free port, a city-state where he could run his criminal empire legally and without interference.
“I ran to save the city,” Fisk told Vanessa. “But opportunities present themselves.”
Fisk, now fully embracing his identity as the Kingpin, declared a form of martial law. He activated a heavily armed Anti-Vigilante Task Force (AVTF) to purge the city of anyone in a mask. In the chaos, Matt was shot by Dex Poindexter but survived. He was rescued from the hospital by Frank Castle, and the two fought side-by-side against the AVTF. They were eventually found by Karen Page, who had returned to New York. Reunited, Matt and Karen discovered Foggy’s old case files, which detailed how the Fisks planned to use the Red Hook port to launder money on a massive scale.
The season ended with Fisk solidifying his tyrannical control over New York, having publicly executed Police Commissioner Gallo to cement his authority. Frank Castle was captured by the AVTF, though a post-credits scene showed him escaping. Matt Murdock, Karen Page, and their allies were now underground, preparing to form a resistance against Mayor Fisk’s regime.
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Looking Ahead to Daredevil: Born Again Season 2
The second season of Daredevil: Born Again is scheduled to premiere on Disney+ on March 4, 2026. The season will consist of eight episodes and continue the story directly from the finale. Executive producer Brad Winderbaum described Matt Murdock’s journey in Season 2 as that of a “revolutionary and a rebel” going “up against the power of the city”.
The cast will see the return of Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio, alongside Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page and Wilson Bethel as Bullseye. A major addition is Krysten Ritter, returning as the super-strong private investigator Jessica Jones, who will join Matt’s resistance. Elden Henson is also confirmed to return as Foggy Nelson, likely in flashback sequences. The new season will introduce Matthew Lillard as Mr. Charles, a powerful new player in New York’s political landscape.
Director Aaron Moorhead has described Season 2 as a “resistance tale” against Mayor Fisk, picking up immediately after the tragic events that closed the first season.
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