Marvel Used Major Daredevil Connection for Kingpin’s Debut in Hawkeye

Marvel Studios has officially brought back two characters that first appeared in Netflix’s “DefendersVerse” of shows. Early on in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Charlie Cox reprised his role as the attorney Matt Murdock from Netflix’s beloved Daredevil series. From that same show returned Wilson Fisk, as actor Vincent D’Onofrio appeared as the villain in two episodes of Hawkeye. Since the characters returned, there was a discussion of what that means for the continuity of those Marvel shows that once resided on the streaming service of a Disney+ competitor. Some fans have now noticed, however, a piece of the Hawkeye score could affirm Daredevil’s place within the prime MCU canon.

As one astute Daredevil fan has noticed, the first time Kingpin (D’Onofrio) is seen on-screen in Hawkeye, Christophe Beck’s score uses a chunk of “Trading Judgement,” a tune that first appeared in John Paesano’s score for Daredevil Season Three. Check it out for yourself below.

A portion of the 'Daredevil' Season Three track "Trading Judgement" by John Paesano is used for Kingpin's entrance in the sixth episode of 'Hawkeye'. #Daredevil #Kingpin #Hawkeye #SaveDaredevil @vincentdonofrio @CBeckOfficial pic.twitter.com/RtxsL2Ld8R

— Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki (@MCUWikiFandom) January 5, 2022

D’Onofrio has long insisted both versions of the character—the villain that appears on Daredevil and in Hawkeye—are one and the same, despite some differences in strength and appearance.

“[Marvel was] just so excited that I said that, because it’s what they were thinking,” the actor previously told us. “And I think that everybody realizes that the only way this character, as of now, stays interesting is if he has these, even if you make him stronger, as long as he’s always based that his foundation is his emotional life and the pain, everything comes through the pain that he went through as a child. Then we’ve got a character there, an interesting character.”

All six episodes of Hawkeye are now streaming on Disney+ while three seasons of Daredevil are streaming on Netflix.

What other DefendersVerse characters do you want to see appear in the MCU? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section or by hitting our writer @AdamBarnhardt up on Twitter to chat all things MCU!

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