Ever since Vincent D’Onofrio debuted as Wilson Fisk, aka Kingpin, on Netflix’s Daredevil, Marvel fans have thoroughly enjoyed his performances as the villain. Thanks to his intimidating screen presence, the actor has done an excellent job capturing the spirit of the character and is synonymous with the role. As exciting as it is to see D’Onofrio continue to develop Kingpin on TV shows such as Hawkeye and Daredevil: Born Again, what people really want to see is the actor appear in a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie. There have long been rumors about Kingpin popping up in a film, but it hasn’t happened yet, and it likely won’t unless Marvel can fix one big issue.
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In an interview with The Playlist, D’Onofrio addressed the speculation concerning Kingpin’s possible role in this summer’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day. “No. I think I’ll just wait until they have the rights to my character and they put me in one of those movies, and then I’ll figure it all out,” he said.
Can Marvel Fix the Rights Issue With Kingpin?
This isn’t the first time D’Onofrio has cited a rights issue as the reason why he hasn’t starred in a Marvel movie yet. Back in 2024, he mentioned that Kingpin is one of the characters “caught in between Marvel and Sony,” implying that the Kingpin rights are part of the arrangement between Disney and Sony that allowed Spider-Man to become part of the MCU. Though Kingpin is one of Daredevil’s most notorious villains, he’s equally as famous as a member of Spider-Man’s rogues’ gallery, which is probably why the character could be subject to terms of that deal.
D’Onofrio has also said that his Kingpin is “only usable for television series” and he couldn’t even headline a Wilson Fisk spinoff movie. A different version of Kingpin was the main villain in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, so it’s reasonable to assume that the Disney/Sony deal stipulates that D’Onofrio’s iteration must be relegated to TV programs. This is why D’Onofrio has returned for Hawkeye and Echo but has yet to appear in a film. While it would be great to see him go up against Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, Marvel Studios likely felt it was more important to use Kingpin as the main threat in Daredevil series.
If Sony and Disney could figure out a way to make Spider-Man part of the MCU, it stands reason to believe they’d be able to iron something out with Kingpin. It would be mutually beneficial for both companies, opening up more opportunities to use a great character. While new content continues to be made for Disney+ (including Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, premiering this March), Disney surprisingly has the viewpoint that “streaming is dead,” implying the studio could be shifting output strategies back in favor of theatrical releases. If that’s the case, it would behoove Sony and Disney to put their heads together and come to an agreement with Kingpin, ensuring the villain has a bright on-screen future.
It’s arguably odd that this hasn’t happened already. Spider-Man: Brand New Day aims to tell a street-level story and has organized crime elements (Marvin Jones III is playing Tombstone). Plus, Wilson Fisk is currently the mayor of New York City and is waging a war against costumed vigilantes. If Kingpin was going to appear in a Marvel movie, Brand New Day sounds like the most logical fit on paper, but it sounds like the filmmakers had to tell their story without Fisk (unless D’Onofrio is pulling an Andrew Garfield, of course). Brand New Day is being billed as the start of a new chapter for Holland’s Peter Parker, so the hero should still be around even after the MCU resets following Avengers: Secret Wars. Perhaps Kingpin can be part of a Spider-Man 5 instead.
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