I feel like I'm the only person on the planet who actually liked Daredevil
. Most folks I know wiped their butts with copies of the 2003 superhero flick, which saw Ben Affleck starring as the blind lawyer turned vigilante. I thought Affleck nailed the part, and even dug the different spin on his arch nemesis, the Kingpin. Whether people like it or not, it was a modest financial success, earning over $170M worldwide against an $80M budget. A spinoff, starring Affleck's then future wife Jennifer Garner as Elektra
, was a straight up dud, though. The lukewarm critical response ultimately shuttered plans for a Daredevil franchise. Until now, it seems.Variety reports that Fox is looking to relaunch Daredevil in a big way, bringing in David Slade to direct. Slade last helmed The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
, which I affectionately refer to as "the good one". There had been talk for some time that some of the smaller scale licensed superheroes needed to have projects developed for them(Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider, Daredevil) or risk being reverted back to Marvel. That seems to be paramount in Fox's sudden push. Those hoping that what director Mark Steven Johnson did with the first movie will be ignored might be a little disappointed, as the plan appears to be making this a "continuation of the Daredevil saga" and not a classic reboot. Right now there is no writer attached, and no casting. Obviously there'll be no Affleck this time.
I encourage those who still knock Dardevil to check out the much improved director's cut Blu-Ray, and then shoot me an email with your thoughts.
