"We had to feel it" - Daredevil: Born Again showrunner explains the decision behind the controversial death in the premiere

Daredevil: Born Again premiered its first two episodes on Disney+ on March 4, 2025. Being a revival of the original Daredevil series that ran on Netflix for three seasons and got unfortunately canceled in 2018, the series picks up the story of Matt Murdock many years later and finally gives him his time to shine again in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Warning: Spoilers for Daredevil: Born Again to be mentioned below. Reader discretion is advised.

However, Daredevil: Born Again immediately opens with a massive gut punch to the fans. This comes as Foggy Nelson, who is portrayed by Elden Henson in the show, is tragically gunned down at the start. Given how much of a fan-favorite character was, the decision caused some stir online. In an interview with TV Line, writer Dario Scarpadane addressed how the decision came about.

When he took over the show from Chris Ord and Matt Corman, he revealed that Foggy was originally supposed to die off-screen. However, he wanted the weight of the death to have impact and hence decided to show it on screen to kick off the show.

“It was in the material that I inherited, but unfortunately it was off-screen. And I felt really strongly that if we were to do something that earth-shattering and something that was going to cause such a ripple effect in Matt’s life, we had to see it and we had to feel it," said Scarpadane.

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Elden Henson was "bummed" about Foggy's death in Daredevil: Born Again

In the same interview, showrunner Dario Scarpadane revealed that Elden Henson was "bummed" about Foggy Nelson's death in Daredevil: Born Again. Producer Sana Amanat also further stated that the actor was certainly surprised by his character dying and while the whole ordeal was very bittersweet, he still enjoyed reuniting with Charlie Cox and Deborah Ann Woll.

“Of course it’s all very, very, very bittersweet, but he really enjoyed being together” with former scene partners Charlie Cox and Deborah Ann Woll, if only for those few opening scenes," said Amanat.

Actor Charlie Cox, who portrays Matt Murdock / Daredevil, also agreed that the killing of Foggy Nelson so early off in the show was a big choice. However, he did recognise that since they have been gone for all these years, they need to make a big statement to "rock the boat".

“I understand … that we need to make a big splash. We want to rock the boat early on and draw people in in a new way. [Killing Foggy] is one way to do it, but it’s a big choice," said Cox about Foggy's death.

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Foggy Nelson is killed by Bullseye in Daredevil: Born Again

At the start of Daredevil: Born Again, Bullseye is out on the hunt for Foggy Nelson. Foggy receives a call from one of his witnesses, Benny, that someone is coming for him. This leads to Matt suiting up and investigating the situation, however, Foggy is shot by Bullseye causing him to bleed out and die.

Matt also has a fight with Bullseye in the meantime and he slowly hears Foggy's heartbeat fade away. When he realizes Foggy is dead, he ends up throwing Bullseye off a rooftop and retires from being Daredevil. The show picks up a year later in its aftermath.

For further updates on Daredevil: Born Again, stay tuned with us.