It appears that fans of the iconic Hell's Kitchen antagonist, Wilson Fisk, may need to temper their expectations for seeing him on the big screen. Vincent D’Onofrio, who brilliantly portrays Fisk in the series Daredevil: Born Again, recently shared some disheartening news during an interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast with Josh Horowitz. "The only thing I know is not positive," D’Onofrio revealed. "It's a very hard thing to do, for Marvel to use my character. It's a very hard thing to do, because of ownership and stuff."
D’Onofrio elaborated on the complexities surrounding his character's use, stating, “I’m only usable for television shows. Not even a one-off Wilson Fisk movie. It’s all caught up in rights and stuff. I don’t know when that would work out — or if it ever would work out at all.” This statement effectively dashes hopes of seeing D’Onofrio's Fisk in any Marvel Cinematic Universe films, including anticipated titles like Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday. This limitation could also impact potential plans for a Charlie Cox-led Daredevil movie, where Fisk's presence as the villain would be expected.
D’Onofrio first brought Fisk to life in Marvel's Daredevil, a Netflix original series that ran for three seasons and concluded with nearly 40 episodes in 2018. His portrayal of the powerful New York City crimelord, also known as Kingpin, and future mayor has garnered widespread acclaim from both fans and critics. D’Onofrio's dedication to the character is evident as he draws inspiration from legendary performances to shape his own nuanced depiction of Fisk.
In a recent conversation with IGN, D’Onofrio discussed the influences behind his performance, particularly the everyman quality brought to action scenes by actors like Harrison Ford. "Anytime they were in a fight, or they were holding a gun, they looked nervous," he noted. "They carried their own humility into the action scenes with them. And I always thought that that was the way to go. That made it look real to me. Gary Cooper in Sergeant York, when he takes aim, when he becomes the sniper, it's the humility in his eyes that you see. It's amazing. I think that helps action stuff a lot. We're all very conscious of that."
Currently, fans can catch D’Onofrio's compelling performance in Season 1 of Daredevil: Born Again, which is airing weekly on Disney+ and is set to conclude its finale on April 15, 2025.
