Born Again Is Now Marvel’s First Real R-Rated Test

Daredevil: Born Again premieres next year, and the series will be the first real R-rated test for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Charlie Cox excelled as Matt Murdock in the original Netflix Daredevil series, which is widely known for its approach to mature topics and violence, thanks to the TV equivalent of cinema’s R-rating. Since Netflix cancelled its Defenders universe, Cox has returned to play Daredevil in a cameo in the 2021 movie Spider-Man: No Way Home and on a two-episode stint in last year’s Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.

Following Matt Murdock’s proper entrance into the MCU, Cox is set to lead the new Daredevil MCU show — Daredevil: Born Again — which is already set to make some changes to how the beloved original series operated. While recent news has revealed the return of Jon Bernthal’s Punisher from the Netflix Defenders universe, the same report claimed that Daredevil mainstays, Deborah Ann Woll’s Karen Page and Elden Henson’s Foggy Nelson, will either be recast for the new series or be completely absent. Given that the Disney+ series is not afraid of making big changes to the original show, Daredevil: Born Again is now poised to be Marvel’s first R-rated test.

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Daredevil: Born Again Releases Before Deadpool 3

Daredevil: Born Again is currently set for a Spring 2024 premiere on Disney+, coming in before Deadpool 3 carries the Fox-Marvel burden into the MCU. After a two-month delay, Deadpool 3 will arrive in theaters in November 2024. The movie is currently the only live-action project in the MCU confirmed by Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige to receive an R-rating. Reynolds’ soon-to-be Deadpool trilogy is one of the most successful R-rated franchises in history, being firmly defined by its signature raunchy comedy and gory depictions of violence.

Just like the Deadpool franchise, Netflix’s Daredevil series brought a different kind of storytelling than the MCU is used to seeing. As questions mount about where Netflix’s Daredevil fits in the MCU timeline, the tone of the series raises some problems for its MCU canon status. While not nearly as raunchy as the Reynolds-led franchise, Daredevil was firmly rooted in a hyper-violent world, with realistic bloody fights and other gory depictions of violence, such as Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin cutting off a man’s head after repeatedly bashing him with a car door. If Daredevil: Born Again is not R-rated, the series will need to ditch some crucial elements from the original.

With Daredevil releasing before Deadpool 3, the new Disney+ series will be Marvel’s first R-rated test. Rumors around the project have conflicted on just how close to the tone of the original Daredevil, in Netflix’s Marvel Defenders timeline, the new series will be. While there is still no official word on Daredevil: Born Again‘s R-rating or not, star Cox has teased that the new series will not be a Daredevil season 4, allowing the character to branch out in different directions — tone-wise and related to the plot — than the Netflix Daredevil series became famous for. The R-rated Daredevil might be giving place to a soft reboot with a different tone.

Ryan Reynolds Has Proved Deadpool Can Work In The PG-13 MCU

While Reynolds’ Deadpool franchise is beloved in all of its R-rated glory, the actor has shown in the past that Deadpool can work within a PG-13 rating in the MCU. 2018’s Once Upon a Deadpool was a PG-13 version of the second cinematic adventure of the foul-mouthed mutant, Deadpool 2, recut to fit a younger audience. Once Upon a Deadpool uses as its story framing device an ode to The Princess Bride, with an adult Fred Savage having to listen to the sanitized Deadpool 2 story after being kidnapped by Reynolds’ character. The PG-13 version of the movie cut all F-bombs, gore, and most of the violent scenes.

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Daredevil: Born Again can utilize what worked in Once Upon a Deadpool — a broader appeal and intact character work — if the series is not to be R-rated. Cox’s time in the MCU has already shown that Daredevil as a character can work in Marvel’s signature style. An MCU Spider-Man 4 Daredevil appearance is something that’s seemed possible ever since Matt Murdock had a cameo role as Peter Parker’s lawyer in Spider-Man : No Way Home. In the movie, albeit briefly, Cox’s Matt Murdock maintained his Netflix Daredevil personality, making the switch to a PG-13 rating seamlessly.

Daredevil is being set up to be a major player now that he is firmly planted in the MCU, with Feige declaring that Daredevil and Spider-Man are the pillars of the MCU’s street-level heroes. Based on that, even if Daredevil: Born Again does end up with a more mature tone in sync with the Netflix Daredevil canon seasons, the character will be spending a lot of time in other PG-13 properties around the MCU. She-Hulk: Attorney at Law delivered the first in-depth role for Cox’s Daredevil in the MCU, with the character appearing in two episodes of the series and showcasing a funnier, more relaxed persona than usual.

The Punisher Will Make Daredevil: Born Again The MCU’s First R-Rated Show

The news that Bernthal’s Frank Castle, aka the Punisher, will be joining Cox’s Matt Murdock in Daredevil: Born Again is very exciting, especially for those who want the new series to retain the more mature tone of the original Netflix show. Bernthal has gone on record several times about how changes like Daredevil’s in She-Hulk, which made the character lighter than he was over at Netflix, would not appeal to the Punisher actor if he were to return following the cancellation of The Punisher.

Now that his return as the Punisher in Daredevil: Born Again is confirmed, it means that Bernthal was interested in what Marvel proposed for this new Frank Castle adventure, which likely means the Punisher’s violent nature will remain unchanged in the MCU. Netflix’s Defenders universe was a dark and violent place, and the Punisher was undoubtedly the character who reveled in the universe’s R-rating the most, with Frank Castle making a habit out of violently spilling the blood of criminals. Frank’s approach even clashed with Matt’s, which was displayed during the Punisher’s debut in Daredevil season 2. That relationship might help Daredevil: Born Again pass Marvel’s first R-rated test.

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