Warning: this article contains full spoilers for Daredevil: Born Again Episode 9! Be sure to check out IGN's review of the Season 1 finale.
Daredevil: Born Again has just ended its first season on Disney+, and the finale is quite a doozy. We’ve seen Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock brought low several times over the years, but this might be the bleakest ending yet for old Hornhead. Suffice it to say, MCU fans are in for a very interesting Season 2 when the show makes its return in 2026.
As the dust settles from the latest clash between Daredevil and Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin, let’s break down the dramatic ending to Season 1. Who’s still standing, and how does it all set up Season 2? And what about that recently announced Punisher special? Here’s what we learn from Born Again’s season finale.
Daredevil: Born Again Season 1 Ending Explained
All season long, Born Again has been exploring the question of whether a person can permanently and fundamentally change themselves. Can Matt Murdock just be a lawyer, free of the burden of acting as a vigilante and defying the law he’s sworn to uphold? Can Wilson Fisk truly live on the right side of the law, or is he simply talking a big game when he claims to be looking to make his city a better, safer place?
By the events of the finale, the answer appears to be a resounding “No.” Matt has been called back into action as Daredevil, spurred on by his clash with Muse and his renewed feud with Fisk. Not that this is necessarily presented as a failure on Matt’s part. He’s been forced to accept that there’s no point in adhering to “the system” when there are many whom the system simply doesn’t protect. As much as he’d like to believe otherwise, the city still needs Daredevil.
As for Fisk, at one point, he may have had genuinely good intentions in running for mayor, but we know what they say about those with good intentions. Repeated clashes with disloyal underlings and contemptuous billionaires - as well as his desperate desire to rekindle Vanessa’s (Ayelet Zurer) love for him - have caused Fisk to retreat into his old persona. By this point, Fisk has fully reverted to Kingpin mode and has surrounded himself with an army of cops proudly wearing the Punisher skull and operating completely above the law.
Again, the odds are stacked against Matt like never before in the finale. No sooner does he begin to recover from literally taking a bullet for Fisk than Fisk attempts to remove him from the board permanently, reasoning that a martyred hero can only further his mayoral agenda. Fisk’s first big move is to shut off power to the city and turn his army loose on the looters, justifying the need for martial law.
No sooner does he begin to recover from literally taking a bullet for Fisk than Fisk attempts to remove him from the board permanently, reasoning that a martyred hero can only further his mayoral agenda.It’s here that the wounded, desperate Matt finds two badly needed allies in Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle and Deborah Ann Woll’s Karen Page. Karen has called in a favor with Frank (building on their long shared history in both the original Daredevil series and The Punisher spinoff), forcing Frank to take action even though he claims to be disinterested in the chaos sweeping the city.
After a bloody showdown that leaves Matt’s apartment in shambles, Matt, Frank, and Karen regroup and plot their next move against Fisk. Matt and Karen know that the key to taking down the Fisks is to find the legal motion Foggy (Elden Henson) was preparing to file before his death. They find that motion tucked away in Foggy’s storage locker. Frank stays behind, again feigning disinterest in the fight against Fisk and his army of “fanboys.” But that facade breaks, and Frank eventually confronts the corrupt cops, killing several before being captured.
Daredevil and Karen prepare to storm Fisk’s compound at the Red Hook port, but even Matt can’t deny that the odds are too stacked against them. He won’t be one-shot hallway fighting his way out of this predicament. Instead, the two retreat to lick their wounds and gather what allies they have to fight another day.
And that’s basically where the series leaves things at the end of Season 1. Fisk is triumphant, having extended his grip over the city and imprisoned or killed most of his enemies. Costumed vigilantes are now strictly outlawed in the city. Evil wins, for now. But that doesn’t stop Matt from delivering a rousing speech about the importance of resistance and the enduring strength of New York in Josie’s Bar. The tone has been set for Season 2. Matt has once again embraced his Daredevil persona and is ready to fight for his city by any means necessary.
Does Daredevil: Born Again Have a Post-Credits Scene?
Like so many MCU projects before it, Daredevil: Born Again does indeed have a post-credts scene (or a mid-credits scene, to be specific). That scene revisits Frank Castle, who after enduring a savage beating at the hands of Fisk’s fanatically loyal cops, is now imprisoned in Red Hook alongside the city’s billionaire elite. Frank wastes no time cozying up to the guard, who makes the mistake of shaking hands with The Punisher. One savage bone breaking later, Frank is free and ready to resume his campaign of vengeance.
Does that mean we can expect Bernthal to reprise his role in Season 2? Possibly, but Marvel appears to have other plans in mind for The Punisher as well. We’ll get to him in a bit.
What to Expect From Born Again Season 2
Marvel doesn’t have a strong track record of following up their various Disney + shows with second seasons. On the live-action front, so far only Loki has returned for Season 2. Given that Born Again effectively ends on a cliffhanger, it would be pretty frustrating if the series met with the same fate. Luckily, fans needn’t worry about Born Again becoming trapped in limbo. Season 2 is definitely happening.
Marvel originally announced Born Again as being an 18-episode series. Plans have shifted somewhat since then, but now we can expect an 8-episode second season to follow up on this initial batch of 9 episodes. Dario Scardapane will again serve as showrunner of Season 2, and directors/producers Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson are also returning. Best of all, the new season is already in production, making a 2026 release very possible.
In a roundtable interview with IGN, D’Onofrio revealed that he’s read the scripts for Season 2 and had a very emotional reaction.
“There's already information about what we're about to start shooting in the second season that I had to have a little cry about,” D’Onofrio tells IGN. “So it's quite something. This show can be quite intense as an actor.”
Based on how Episode 9 ends, we have a pretty good idea of the tone and direction of Season 2. Expect an even darker pivot next time around. Fisk has successfully installed himself as the all but untouchable monarch of the city. He’s outlawed costumed vigilantes, which gives his militant police force carte blanche to target anyone rioting or protesting against the government. Daredevil has a few allies - Karen, Clark Johnson’s Cherry, Ruibo Qian’s Detective Kim, etc. - but he’s still just one man staring down the void of facism and systemic rot.
It’s here where the thematic similarities to the original Daredevil: Born Again comic really start to become apparent. In the comic, Fisk systematically dismantles Matt’s life after discovering his secret identity, leaving Matt homeless and destitute. But as Fisk soon discovers, a man without hope is also a man without fear. Matt rises from the ashes more driven than ever, delivering a shattering blow to Fisk’s criminal empire and public reputation.
The circumstances in this series are somewhat different. Fisk has already known Matt’s secret for some time now, and Matt’s arc in Daredevil: Season 3 was arguably a more direct adaptation of the Born Again comic. But this series still presents a scenario where Daredevil’s back is against a wall and he’s been stripped down to his core. His life as Matt Murdock is seemingly over until the present crisis is dealt with. He’s now 100% Daredevil, reborn and fully committed to bringing down Fisk’s regime. Thanks to Foggy, he and Karen have the ammo. Now they have to make their city understand the truth about the monster they elected.
We’re expecting most of the Season 1 supporting cast to return for Season 2. That includes Woll’s Karen Page, who appears to be positioned for a bigger role next time around.
Scardapane tells IGN, “I will say only as I've said time and time [again], Karen Page is the heart and soul of this universe and of this Daredevil mythology and Karen's interaction with our story. And this season and beyond is huge.”
Fisk’s ban on masks affects a great many characters in the MCU. It’s sort of Captain America: Civil War’s Sokovia Accords in a New York microcosm.However, Season 2 also opens the door for more costumed vigilantes to make an appearance. Fisk’s ban on masks affects a great many characters in the MCU. It’s sort of Captain America: Civil War’s Sokovia Accords in a New York microcosm. Anyone in the city who wears a mask and attempts to use it for either good or ill is now directly in Fisk’s crosshairs.
Rumors have persisted that Born Again will bring back other actors from the Netflix days, such as Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones and Mike Colter’s Luke Cage. The status quo heading into Season 2 certainly justifies bringing both characters into the fold. Born Again hints that we may meet at least one new costumed hero in Season 2. Camila Rodriguez’ Angela Ayala is showing every sign of wanting to follow in her uncle’s footsteps and becoming the new White Tiger (as happened in the comics). She may not have much in the way of training, but a mystical amulet has to count for something, right?
Check back tomorrow for a deeper dive into the MCU’s current lineup of street-level heroes and vigilantes.
How Born Again Sets Up the Punisher Special
If there’s one takeaway from the Season 1 finale, it’s that there’s a definite future for Bernthal’s Frank Castle in the MCU. We see Frank making his violent escape from Fisk’s homemade prison. There’s definitely going to be some more punishment on the menu.
Bernthal probably has a part to play in Season 2, but that’s not all. We recently learned that Marvel is developing a standalone Punisher Disney+ special in the vein of Werewolf by Night and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. Bernthal will star and is also writing the screenplay alongside We Own This City’s Reinaldo Marcus Green.
Presumably, the Punisher special will delve deeper into the conflict between Frank Castle and the corrupt cops who have co-opted his image and mission. It’s a big real-world problem facing the character that Marvel has finally started to address, and Born Again appears to be just the start of a larger storyline. We’ll probably see Frank go on the offensive again, and likely deliver some version of his famous speech to two NYPD officers from 2019’s The Punisher #13:
"We're not the same. You took an oath to uphold the law. I gave all that up a long time ago. You don't do what I do. Nobody does."
That doesn’t necessarily preclude Bernthal from also appearing in Born Again: Season 2. As long as Frank remains active as a vigilante, the Fisk regime is a clear and present danger. That means we can probably expect another reluctant Daredevil/Punisher team-up in the near future. And who knows? Maybe Karen will finally accept that offer of a cup of coffee.
Which vigilante do you most want to see in Born Again Season 2? Vote in our poll and let us know in the comments below.
For more on the future of the MCU, learn about the 75 comics that may be inspiring Avengers: Doomsday and brush up on every Marvel movie and series in development.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.
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