Warning: Potential spoilers ahead for Daredvil: Born Again.
The subtitle “Born Again” in the upcoming Disney+ Daredevil: Born Again series could just as aptly apply to Ayelet Zurer, who plays Vanessa Marianna-Fisk, the wife of Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (played by Vincent D’Onofrio) as it does to the eponymous Man Without Fear.
That’s because Zurer, initially had her role as Vanessa recast by another actress. After the SAG-AFTRA strike in 2023 however, the Daredevil show that had been in planning was cancelled and revived with new showrunner Dario Scardapane. Zurer was then asked to reprise her role as Vanessa once more with Scardapane at the helm.
“It was such a nice surprise, you know, for me, cause I really, really liked the show, and I really like the relationship, and working with Vincent was always one of my, you know, highlights of career,” Zurer told Business Insider.
Vanessa, who was introduced in the first season of the Netflix Daredevil series as an art dealer, eventually falls in love with and has a son with Fisk. Despite this, she is opposed to his criminal activities and lifestyle, which naturally causes a complicated and troublesome dynamic between the two in the series.
In Born Again, that already complicated dynamic will continue, albeit with a whole new twist added. It’s already been hinted that at the onset of Born Again Wilson Fisk/Kingpin may no longer be a kingpin at all — he’ll be running for mayor — which means any overly illegal activities might be behind him (we all know politicians never break the law). So who has taken over in Kingpin’s absence as the central crime figure of New York?
Vanessa.
“Since he was gone, she took over a little bit and it’s very hard to pull away from that,” Zurer explains. “So some things are not sitting well and they have to deal with that.”
She added that Born Again will continue to explore Vanessa and Kingpin’s relationship in a more mature fashion.
“Things changed in their relationship. We come in after a gap of time where they also haven’t been together, I won’t say too much about that. But when they return, they are the very strange lovers that they are.”
What do you think of the fact that ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ will further explore Kingpin’s relationship with his wife Vanessa? Are you looking forward to seeing Ayelet Zurer reprise the role of Vanessa? Let us know in the comments.
