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BREAKING: Director Joe Carnahan seems to be ready to toss in the towel on the last ditch attempt to reboot the Marvel superhero Daredevil before Fox’s rights to the franchise expire this fall. Carnahan sent out a tweet today saying, “I think my idea for a certain retro, red-suited, Serpico-styled superhero went up in smoke today kids.”
From what I’m hearing, that means that Fox, which made the original Daredevil movie that starred Ben Affleck, is prepared to see the rights to that character revert back to Marvel Studios, and fall under the Disney umbrella. Marvel essentially said no to an extension and to Fox’s request that it come aboard as cofinancier of the Daredevil film. Deadline revealed back at Comic-Con that Fox had a problem with a ticking rights clock that would expire in October, something that became an issue after David Slade bailed on the project after he committed to direct the Hannibal pilot. Fox wasn’t too upset by all this, because the studio was lukewarm on making the movie.
It is certainly possible that Carnahan, who’s coming off The Grey, will get the chance to make his gritty blind lawyer-turned crime fighter Matt Murdock/Daredevil at Disney. But it will be Kevin Feige’s decision. As for Fox, the studio will focus on the forward moving Marvel projects Fantastic Four, which is being rebooted, and X-Men: First Class and The Wolverine, both of which are being sequelized. The original Mark Steven Johnson-directed Daredevil squeaked past the $100 million domestic gross mark in 2003, grossed $178 million worldwide and turned in an opening weekend just north of $40 million. It wasn’t thought of as a big success, though, even though it led to the spinoff Elektra, which starred Jennifer Garner. It is one of Marvel’s core comic book heroes so it will be interesting to see what Marvel does with the characters in that universe.
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Fine by me. It’s a shot in the dark, but I’d love to see X-Men revert back next.
Nah, X-Men is better off at Fox. There’s no way that Marvel can give X-Men the attention which it could potentially receive at Fox (And which, according to Bryan Singer, it’ll finally be getting). The X-Men Universe is very nearly as expansive as the rest of the Marvel Universe, and multiple franchises can easily be spun out of it. Nevermind that the X-Men have always seemed to exist in their own niche universe, anyway. Moreover, the whole premise of Anti-Mutant prejudice and hysteria really wouldn’t fit in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Can you imagine the same people cheering on the Avengers turning on the X-Men and demanding that they be rounded up and put in camps? That level of hatred, bigotry, and paranoia doesn’t fit into the world that Marvel’s creating in the MCU. Hell, it never fit into the comic universe, which is why the X-Men have always seemed segregated from the rest of the Marvel Universe, while the rest of the Marvel Universe rarely if ever touched on Anti-Mutant hysteria.
If anything, it’s the Fantastic Four which need to go back to Marvel. They fit in perfectly with what Marvel’s doing and the characters which they’ll bring along will enrich the MCU as a whole, and Marvel knows it. On top of which, Fox will never be able to exploit the Fantastic Four to its full potential because that’s a franchise which needs a larger universe to operate in. It’s not a strong enough property to stand on its own two feet. It needs to exist in the MCU to reach its full potential. So why keep it if you’ll never be able to truly succeed with it?
If the executives at Fox had some sense then they’d hash out a deal where Marvel gets the Fantastic Four and all their associated characters back sooner than stipulated in the contract. Either sell the rights back for a nice lump sum, work out some co-financing deals for future X-Men movies, a cut of the profits from the MCU Fantastic Four movies, etc. There must be some sort of deal which they could work out which would make it worthwhile for both parties, all while allowing for Fantastic Four movies which get to make full use of the benefits of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and which can compliment that universe in turn by allowing for the appearance of characters like the Silver Surfer, Annihilus, and Galactus in future Avengers or Guardians of the Galaxy movies.
If Fox is going to continue to make comic book movies, though, then X-Men is what they should focus on. They’ll never be able to make the most of the Fantastic Four franchise, so why divert resources into that when they could instead be using those resources to enlarge the X-Men Universe? As Bryan Singer has noted, the X-Men Universe is, on its own, very nearly equal to the size of the Marvel Universe. And it’s a univdrse which Fox apparently owns lock, stock, and barrel. So instead of splitting resources between two film universes which’re as divergent and unrelated as the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, how about focusing entirely on the X-Men?
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. The X-Men offer so many opportunities that I don’t see why Fox feels like it has to bother with anything else. They could easily match and even surpass Marvel Studios output, and create a universe just as expansive, based on the X-Men characters which they own. And were not talking a bunch of movies with the same tone or repeating the same storylines, either. A couple examples of what they could do…
X-FACTOR: A mutant detective agency with a comedic noir flavor.
DEADPOOL: A comedic action adventure (And from what I’ve heard of the script, it’s amazing. Why Fox isn’t running to film that movie, I have no idea).
X-FORCE: A Black Ops secretive mutant strike team tasked with dealing with the most extreme threats to the mutant race.
NEW X-MEN: Follows the light-hearted adventures of the students at the Xavier Institute, which is kind of like the Mutant version of Hogwarts.
WOLVERINE: ‘Nuff said.
And all of that before you actually even get to a movie about the actual X-Men. A franchise which could itself be split into two separate franchises, which Fox could dub UNCANNY X-MEN and ASTONISHING X-MEN. The former team could be led by Storm and the latter team could be led by Cyclops. Fox could do this because, given all the characters they have, there really is no limit to the number of movies they could put out. Could you imagine one film trilogy where one team of X-Men has to fight Mutant hating cyborgs like the Reavers and confront the Sentinels, AI’s developed to kill mutants? And then compliment that with a second trilogy in which a second team of X-Men uncovers the Mutant Massacre perpetraded on the Morlocks by the Marauders, fights Mr. Sinister, and ultimately confronts Apocalypse?
There is just SOOO much potential with the X-Men, potential which Fox is fully capable of making the most of. That’s what they should be focusing on, instead of wasting their time with the Fantastic Four, which adds absolutely nothing to that and instead would detract from the resources they could expend on growing the X-Men Universe.
Cap you are a genius and you deserve to be put in charge of X-Men or you should be Kevin Feige’s senior vice president. Unfortunately you are dealing with News Corp. and 20th Century Fox. The cheapest studio and the worst studio. They make shitty movies for the most part and they don’t care if they’re lousy they make them to fill a pipeline. Occasionally something really good will get made like Rise of the Apes or Prometheus or X-First-Class but for the most part FOX does not care about being inventive. Your suggestions are brilliant but they are falling on deaf ears. However they will steal some of your ideas at some point. Your post has already been printed and turned into a “confidential internal development memo” with somebody else’s name on it.
that was dope…you need to write the screenplays…for real Apocalypse!!! What!!!
Good news that DD gets to rejoin Marvel’s movie universe. Still think it’d be a better TV series than movie, though (duh he’s a LAWYER). Here’s hoping.
I’ll take a cameo in Avengers 2, maybe a supporting role in the next few Marvel universe movies and a TV show/procedural over another film.
Your suggestion is a pretty big step down for such a good character.
Totally disagree.
The great thing about Daredevil is the hooks that writers leave for each other. (Um…possible spoiler alert… Kevin Smith’s ending was brought up again during Bendis’ “Out” arch).
If i could totally rule the world- think of a TV show- Noirish in the vein of Shield combined with the legal side of say Law and Order.
TV is a MUCH better format for the character and would allow introductions to other pivotal characters in the 616 (Luke Cage, Danny Rand, Jessica Jones, etc)
DD will be the answer of nolans batman from marvel.
and no B-series craps just no.
I think this is the best comment I’ve read. As long as Nolan doesn’t change too many things this time around, I won’t be disappointed, but don’t get me wrong Nolan’s Batman was the best so far, but he screwed up as far as eliminating a lot of potential baddies, and he took out the detective part of it. Batman is more like a Crime Scene Investigator that won’t hesitate to beat your @$$. I could see Nolan pulling this off as long as he makes sure Daredevil is still Daredevil.
DD as a TV series is a no-brainer. A hybrid legal procedural/action-thriller drama. Think The Good Wife meets Dexter meets Burn Notice. Jeph Loeb, jump on this!
I could see “Daredevil” as a first-run syndication hit myself
Foggy, now you’re getting it. Add the fact that DD’s villains are all low-tech (The Owl, Stilt-Man, Gladiator, Bullseye, Kingpin, ninjas, etc.) and could work within a TV budget.
And DD wasn’t always dark. Go back to the old Lee/Colan era, a little more light-hearted.
Simon Baker has always been my dream choice for Matt Murdock/DD.
I always thought that Jeffery Donovan would make a great Matt Murdock
That sucks. carnahan had me excited about DD. I’d love to see them adapt Miller’s DD v. Punisher from the 80s.
Scott
@Barbariancomic
Zachary Levi as the Daredevil!!! Please!!! wishful thinking
Zachary Levi is playing Fandral in the next Thor movie though.
As parody.
Zachary Levi as Fandral the Joke
It was a good pitch. However, it was far too violent and made many of us very, very uncomfortable with the idea of executing the film. It was a long shot.
have you ever actually read a Daredevil story?? I highly doubt it
Violence is part and parcel of that universe
Completely agree. Would’ve LOVED to see an R-rated DD film done the right way (more French Connection than Spider-Man)
If this is really someone from “inside the production” i am quite scared.
Daredevil is based in violence, his origin is based in violence. (Hello… like some other characters at the Distinguished Competition that has made billions of dollars).
Daredevil to be done correctly as a film needs an R rating. If its on TV it should go over to FX in part of their line up with say… I don’t know… maybe Powers?
The only thing Zachary Levi should play is the Invisible Man.
And you don’t go to Whedon for legal thrillers.
We tried to sit through A-Team and we just couldn’t make it happen.
Couldn’t agree more. Not sure what people see in Carnahan. Haven’t really enjoyed any of his films.
Really? Everyone I know who saw it had a good time with it. It was a ton of fun.
Now watch Marvel Studio prove that it’s possible to film a really good Daredevil movie.
PG family funny style. Disney doesn’t do R. Your dreams are about to be dashed fanboys. Forget Punisher too.
As long as they don’t mention it on Disney.com, they’ll be fine. A Deadpool game is coming out.
What’s this got to do with MOVIES fanboy? R-rated fanwank fantasies from Marvel’s Daredevil or Marvel’s anything are more fanboy stupidity. If evil Fox wouldn’t give you R-rated Daredevil, Disney sure as hell won’t. Grow up.
really?
Why was Punisher for awhile (after the merger the rights reverted back) being considered as a TV show (A Marvel production) and airing on Fox? Grant it, I personally believe the deal fell apart because of the rights issues with FF and DD.
Powers is a Creator own book, under the Marvel Icon banner, and is sitting at FX.
Daredevil can be done and watered down to say a level of like Law and Order and air on ABC. or it could stay true and air on another provider (Fox, FX, HBO etc etc)
Plus, in the big scheme of things, the character needs to be reintroduced into the mainstream for a number of major story lines- including Civil War (as Feige has mentioned in the past). He is too tied up in so many relationships in the 616 that you cannot ignore him.
Its just a matter of time and how much Disney wants to water him down, but frankly based on what Feige et al have been doing, I am not to worried- esp since CCO Joe Quesada made his name on the comic book side BECAUSE of Daredevil.
Joe Carnahan has made two terrific movies, “Narc” and “The Grey.”
Yes, it’s strange how the general perception was/still is that “Daredevil” wasn’t a success. How would its box office translate into today’s dollars, especially considering how much bigger the foreign market is now?
Fox sat on this character for 9 years and they did jack with the character save that Elektra bomb. Now the character is going back to Marvel and that’s good. Marvel will decide how best to utilize the character be it in TV, animation, or a motion picture. Fox certainly hasn’t been able to do it for the decade they had the character.
Daredevil was overall a success in 2003, but the Elektra spin-off basically killed it and Ben Affleck lost interest in the franchise as well. Fox was clearly never committed to making this reboot and was clearly just dragging their feet the past two years to make it look like they were making a movie to hang on to the rights as long as possible.
Oh well. Justice is being served hopefully.
Ben Affleck should direct the new Daredevil with Kevin Smith writing.
This actually something I would agree with on a few conditions:
If fox is going to keep the rights on xmen and make it its own little version of the MCU they MUST do the following:
a) Hire a continuity director (sorry they broke it between X1 and XFirst class and it was so obvious for even the mainstream people watching it with me).
b) Certain characters need to be used in the MCU- give permission for Marvel to able to use say, Wolverine and Emma Frost if they don’t mention the mutant connection (ala how Feige mentioned with Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver). There are some characters that are pivotal for story lines (Civil War comes to mind).
The reason why FOX would pass on this interpretation of ‘Daredevil’ is that it’s completely the opposite of what a big studio wants from a comic book adaptation now.
If the movie is ultra gritty and/or set in the past, children won’t be the target demographic. First of all, they won’t be allowed to see it if it’s rated maturely.
Second of all, children are only able to emotionally invest in things set in the present or the future. (Toy sales for the WWII set ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ were disappointing).
Box office revenues are down, down, down. Too many expensive films have tanked, therefore licensing fees are the prime motivator for a studio to make a franchise film.
If you can’t license a super hero movie to children’s product manufacturers, then forget about it.
“If you can’t license a super hero movie to children’s product manufacturers, then forget about it.”
Jeremy- have you seen the numbers and merchandising for Kick Ass? Hell my little cousins could buy Halloween costumes as Hit Girl. Toys. Books. That was an R rated superhero movie and Millar et al merchandised the Q(&#%&Q)#)Q&% out of it.
Why is it that i can walk into Target or Toys R Us and in the Marvel Legends and the 3.5 in figures find characters such as Moon Knight and Punisher?
The reason, if any, why the Captain toy sales were not as hot was maybe because the merchandise stunk. Captain American being my second favorite character (right behind Daredevil) I couldn’t bring myself to buy any of the merch because I couldn’t stand the designs or the sculpting.
I think your argument is flawed. Parents will let their kids watch PG 13 and R rated films. When I went to see Kick Ass in the theater I saw a number of kids that were younger that 12/13. Case in point- in the shootings in Colorado, parents bought a newborn and a six year old to a midnight showing of TDKR. I personally know people that allow their children (10 and under) to watch things like Walking Dead and Saw. (Do I agree? not really but that’s a completely different story).
The only thing that your post further proves is that DD should be a TV show and not a film. I have to agree with @Karen Page (and not just because of her handle name) that it would work better because all of the DD rouge gallery are low tech. You can have a huge story line play out for a couple of seasons that was small in the book overall story (MGH anyone?)
This is really, really sad if this happen.I still believe that FOX should try one more time to keep with them the DAREDEVIL rights. If i were an executive at FOX i would try not to lose the rights of DAREDEVIL i would get an agree with those STUPID DISNEY GUYS to co-produce the film, as well as WARNER BROS did the same with PARAMOUNT to make WATCHMEN a DC comic film.Besides i believe that THE MAN WITHOUT FEAR is a property which THE EVIL HOUSE OF MOUSE did not curdle at all. DAREDEVIL is a dark hero and lets be honest DISNEY will never be able to create something with the necessary dark tone.DAREDEVIL AND THE FANTASTIC FOUR SHOULD STAY AT FOX.LET THAT THOSE IDIOTS OF DISNEY GET THEIR OWN HEROES.
HUGH, you have no idea what you’re talking about. If Fox wanted the rights to Daredevil, they could have had them. Instead, according to most reports, they decided they wanted the rights to use Galactus and the Silver Surfer even more.
And what makes you think that Fox would make such a remarkable version of Daredevil? Didn’t you see the first time that they tried? It wasn’t terrible, but it also wasn’t that remarkable, either.
Daredevil CAN be a very dark hero, though not all versions of the character were (like Batman, it depends upon the writer who handles the character).
And what proves how little you know about these things is one of your last statements: “DAREDEVIL AND THE FANTASTIC FOUR SHOULD STAY AT FOX.LET THAT THOSE IDIOTS OF DISNEY GET THEIR OWN HEROES.”
Marvel DOES own Daredevil, so if you ask me, it makes perfect sense for them to use the character.
And what does Disney owning Marvel have to do with the character being portrayed in a ‘dark’ fashion?
Little, or nothing at all because you don’t need an R-rating for a character to be dark. After all Chris Nolan did pretty well with a PG-13 with the Dark Knight (I deliberately didn’t use “The Dark Knight Rises” because it wasn’t as good as the second film).
Marvel could always promote Daredevil as a viable commodity by having him make a cameo appearance in one of Sony’s Spiderman sequels. The area known as Hell’s Kitchen NYC is no longer as dingy or as crime-ridden as it was during the 1970s but there are neighborhoods that are situated in the outer boroughs of today’s New York City that are suitably seedy-looking and sinister-looking especially when you examine them at night. And, such nearby towns in neighboring New Jersey could provide a film noir type of an environment, as well. Perhaps Sony will not relinquish its Spiderman film rights but I wonder if it would allow some of the Disney MCU characters to appear in an upcoming Spiderman movie?
My question is, will they try to fit Daredevil into The Avengers 2?
Thank the heavens! Fox doesn’t know how to make a good super-hero movie if they saw how it was done (I mean they put Wolverine and X-Men First Class out after Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk.
Unlike Fox, Marvel/Disney will:
1) Use Daredevil as their universes’ Batman (yes, a response to Nolan’s Dark Knight Series)
2) DD will be the Marvel Knight Iron Man. From his story will unfold Iron Fist, Power Man, Dr. Strange and others (Dr. Strange, Power-Man and Iron Fist movies have been put on hold for some reason… here’s to hoping.)
3) The Marvel Knight story line will run along the Avengers movie-verse, and will ultimately culminate into A movie version of “Civil War”.
4) They will embrace everything about Daredevil and make it screen-worthy. His powers, paraphernalia, and abilities (ninja included), back-story.
Are you serious? In order for a DD movie to have full utilization of its potential, it needs an R rating and it needs to be very violent.