There continues to be some debate over whether Charlie Cox has returned in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the same Matt Murdock from the previous Daredevil series that spanned three seasons at Netflix. In 2018, when the Daredevil TV show ended its run, the future of Cox's Daredevil was very unclear. As years started to pass, it was appearing like the character would never return, but that changed when Cox reprised the role for a cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home. He would later appear in the Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law as well.
Fans have been stoked about Cox returning as Daredevil either way, but the variant discussion has left some still unsure just how linked Daredevil: Born Again will be linked with the previous show. Given that the multiverse is firmly a part of the MCU at this point, it's completely possible that the events from the Netflix series happened differently or not at all with the Daredevil we'll follow in Born Again. At the same time, it hasn't been ruled out that the Netflix shows are completely canonical with the MCU, which would essentially make Daredevil: Born Again like an extended fourth season of Daredevil.
In any case, Cox admits he's not quite sure one way or the other, and he can't really give a straight answer to that question. In a new interview with inews.co.uk, the actor seems to go both ways with his response, noting that he personally doesn't think it's a different character. At least, Cox says he has approached the role with that mindset, feeling that he's reprising the same role. With that said, he also says he hasn't seen any scripts yet, so even he won't really know for sure until he finds out what happens on the new show. From the interview:
"I don’t think it’s a different character. I just think it’s maybe a different period of his life. I don’t think my interpretation will change – they hired the same actor. We’re saying this is a whole new… era, or variant? I haven’t read the scripts, so I don’t know. But like, it’s part of the multiverse?”
Daredevil: Born Again Will Have Some Differences
While the variant question can't be answered just yet, we do know that Daredevil: Born Again will have some differences compared to the Netflix series. Cox also recently shared in an NME interview that the new show probably won't be as bloody compared to its predecessor, likely a byproduct of the new show coming to Disney+ instead of Netflix. Cox said his hope was that having a less gory product won't make the show any less enjoyable.
"This has to be a reincarnation, it has to be different, otherwise why are we doing it? My opinion is this character works best when he’s geared towards a slightly more mature audience. My instinct is that on Disney+ it will be dark but it probably won’t be as gory. I would say to those people [expecting a continuation of the Netflix series], we’ve done that. Let’s take the things that really worked, but can we broaden? Can we appeal to a slightly younger audience without losing what we’ve learned about what works?”
Daredevil: Born Again, which consists of a whopping 18 episodes, will film pretty much the entire year and is expected to arrive on Disney+ in 2024.