‘Daredevil: Born Again’ EP Sana Amanat Teases Season 2: ‘The Action Is Nonstop’

Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk can’t outrun their pasts — or each other.

All season long, Marvel Television’s Daredevil: Born Again has followed Murdock (Charlie Cox) and Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) as they try to forge a new path and leave behind their violent personas. But despite their best efforts, the two men find themselves falling back into their old roles as Daredevil and Kingpin, culminating with a deadly showdown at Mayor Fisk’s inaugural ball in Episode 8. As Matt confronts Vanessa Fisk (Ayelet Zurer) for her role in Foggy Nelson’s death, Bullseye (Wilson Bethel) crashes the party, forcing Matt to jump into action and take a bullet intended for the mayor. 

Ahead of the Season 1 finale, Daredevil: Born Again executive producer Sana Amanat sat down with Marvel.com to break down Murdock and Fisk’s tense dancefloor confrontation. Here, Amanat opens up about Daredevil and Kingpin’s inevitable collision course — and shares some tantalizing details about Season 2.

MARVEL.COM: What’s it been like watching the fan reaction to Daredevil: Born Again each week?

SANA AMANAT: It’s been really thrilling. Episode 8 in particular is a marker of what we wanted to do with the show and our love for these characters, and it was really exciting to see the fans felt the same way. I feel like they understood our intentions and our visual approach. So, many kudos to our directorial team, our camera team, and our entire crew — and of course, our writers Dario Scardapane and Jesse Wigutow, who wrote the script for Episode 8. I was really happy with the ways the fans got it, and I’m excited to see what they think of the finale.

MARVEL.COM: Throughout the season, Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk have mostly kept their distance from one another, but Episode 8 finds them face to face at Fisk’s inaugural ball. What was fun for you about setting that confrontation in such a glamorous location?

SANA AMANAT: I remember when Dario and Jesse were telling me how they wanted to crack the episode. Dario was like, “Two words: ballroom dance.” And I was like, “I’m in.” [Laughs] The show is so operatic in so many ways, and this sequence felt like an amazing culmination. There’s some important revelations that happen in this episode, and it was important to have a showdown for these two characters. They’ve been having this truce that, unfortunately, was probably meant to be broken.

We were in that location for about five days, and we were losing our minds by the end. It was definitely a dance — a literal dance, but also a figurative dance in terms of all the drama that was playing on the dance floor, with the reveals happening behind the scenes and Kingpin being Kingpin. It was super fun and super tricky, and I am so grateful that we were able to pull it off.

MARVEL.COM: It’s been fascinating to watch Matt and Fisk on these parallel journeys: They’ve both been trying to turn over a new leaf, but they find themselves falling back into their old roles as Daredevil and Kingpin. How did you want to emphasize their similarities?

SANA AMANAT:  That was the most intriguing thing: These two characters are two sides of the same coin. They are ultimately always drawn to each other. They have some strange, magnetic, toxic pull toward one another, and we really wanted to play with that. We wanted to showcase the challenges that both of them are having by deciding to put away their quote-unquote “masks,” as well as the lore of their rivalry. There’s so much story there to tell, and Charlie and Vincent are both such impeccable performers.

Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk are so layered and complex and flawed in similar ways. They choose to have different ends, different means, and different intentions. But oftentimes, their addiction to violence and darkness feels somewhat similar, and it was great to play with that.

MARVEL.COM: This season has also highlighted the complicated relationship between Wilson and Vanessa Fisk. We learn in episode 8 that it was Vanessa who ordered the hit on Foggy Nelson. How did you want to explore their marital relationship?

SANA AMANAT: I remember when we were going back and looking at Vanessa’s character arc, I was intrigued by [Daredevil] season 3, where she decided to tell Kingpin to kill Agent Nadeem. She came in, and she said, “I want to be your partner.” She wasn’t mad that he sent her away. I thought that was interesting, and I thought, what kind of woman decides to be with a man like this? What does it say about who she is? That’s what we wanted to explore, the idea that if he had to go away, she takes over because she’s smart enough to do it.

We were really interested in what that did to the dynamics of the relationship. They were two people who were very much in love, but they also attained so much power. What does that do to their dynamic? What does that do to the concept of trust, especially when he was away? They’re dark souls. They’re doing dark, maniacal things. But there’s real love there, and that is such a fascinating contrast.

MARVEL.COM: The show also introduces a familiar face from the comics: Cole North, played by Jeremy Isaiah Earl. But he plays a very different role in the show. How did you want to approach bringing that character to the screen?

SANA AMANAT: No spoilers for the finale, but there are definitely some big revelations with that character that are a bit different from the comics. What we’re trying to do is tell a story about the extremes that a character believes he has to go through to be the kind of individual he believes himself to be. He thinks he is justified. Exploring and telling that story, we’re coming in from a very different angle. There is definitely more to come, and it’s a great example of adapting and trying new things. But we feel like there’s a lot more story to tell with that character.

MARVEL.COM: Speaking of the comics, you also introduced the terrifying killer Muse. Why did you want to bring him from page to screen?

SANA AMANAT: Muse is very scary. He’s a strange fella with some strange obsessions! What was really interesting to me was the visual motifs of what he was doing in the city, not just taunting New Yorkers but taunting Fisk and Matt Murdock. Matt put the suit away, and look at what happened to New York: He ended up letting a serial killer do what he did.

This season is really about the concept of masks and what that mask says about one’s identity. Is Matt Murdock Daredevil, or is he Matt Murdock? Which one is the mask? It’s the same for Wilson Fisk: Is he Kingpin, or is he Mayor Fisk? So, there was something interesting about Muse feeling as though he could be the fullest version of himself by putting on this mask. And what does that say about our main characters?

MARVEL.COM: Are there any fun Easter eggs or details this season that fans may have not picked up on?

SANA AMANAT: I feel like people have been catching everything for the most part! I obviously loved the Ms. Marvel reference, of course. And all of the Bullseye nods, like the tooth. I will say there’s a very cool moment at the top of Episode 9. All I’m going to say is that it has to do with Bullseye, and it’s a little wink that our directors Justin [Benson] and Aaron [Moorhead] did. And I love them for it.

MARVEL.COM: You’ve already started production on Daredevil: Born Again Season 2. How’s it going so far?

SANA AMANAT: It’s been great. We’ve been shooting a lot of crazy sequences. The crew is crushing it, and the action is nonstop. The backdrop is a little different. It’s still New York, but it’s a slightly different kind of New York.

I’m very excited about the material we’ve been getting. I’ve been fangirling all week. We shot a really big sequence with Wilson Fisk this week, and I felt like a kid in a candy shop. [Laughs]

MARVEL.COM: I’m curious: Is there something you learned from making Season 1 that shaped your approach to Season 2?

SANA AMANAT: I’m very happy with the way Season 1 ended up, especially considering all of the starts and stops. Ultimately, these actors are such incredible performers. You just have to trust them, and you know they’re going to give you the material that you need. We’re all fans, and we’re trying to do things that we feel are delivering on fan expectations. The last two episodes [of Season 1] for us were really about serving the fans and ourselves. There are some fun sequences that you are going to see, especially in the last episode. And Season 2 will hopefully be even more fun.

New episodes of Daredevil: Born Again stream every Tuesday at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET on Disney+.