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The Man Without Fear is returning to our TV screens as Daredevil: Born Again arrives on Disney+ in March 2025. However, savvy fans will know that this isn’t the first time we’ve seen Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock on television in the MCU. He first appeared in Netflix’s Daredevil back in 2015, but that isn’t the only show that has been leading up to Daredevil: Born Again. If you want to properly catch up on everything Daredevil before the new series starts, here is everything you need to watch first.

Daredevil

The first season of Daredevil streamed on Netflix in 2015 and instantly became a massive hit for both the streamer and Marvel Studios. The action was tight. Vincent D’Onofrio had an understated menace to him as Wilson Fisk/Kingpin. The show found a solid audience by catering to Marvel fans who wanted to see street-level heroes as opposed to the world-saving heroics of The Avengers on the big screen. All three seasons are reportedly still canon with Daredevil: Born Again, so you’ll want to start your Daredevil catchup here.

The Punisher

While Daredevil doesn’t actually make an appearance in The Punisher, we know that Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle will be in Daredevil: Born Again, so you’ll probably want to get caught up here. This is a more brutal, violent take on vigilantism, but there are some remarkable moments in the series. We’re particularly interested in how the finale of the second season, which sees Castle going to therapy rather than taking his anger out on the underworld of New York City, leads into his re-emergence as The Punisher in Daredevil: Born Again.

The Defenders

The Marvel shows on Netflix had their own crossover series in 2018, which brought Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist together to form a low-level version of The Avengers to defend New York. There are some great moments between the characters and some excellent action in The Defenders, with plot points that are almost certainly going to be brought up again in Daredevil: Born Again.

Hawkeye

Again, Charlie Cox’s Daredevil doesn’t show up in Hawkeye on Disney+, but his presence is felt throughout the series. More importantly, Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin makes his return to the MCU in Hawkeye. Even years later, Fisk is still just as menacing and threatening without being overtly hostile. Here, Kingpin is a bit more powerful than he was in the Netflix Daredevil series, going toe-to-toe with Kate Bishop before getting taken down by Echo in the finale.

She-Hulk

While his appearance in She-Hulk was primarily played for laughs, it remains an important part of MCU lore that Daredevil hooked up with She-Hulk and we love that for both of them. This probably isn’t required viewing – we don’t expect She-Hulk to pop up in Daredevil: Born Again – but it is a chance to Matt Murdock in action both in the courtroom and on the streets of New York once again.

Ms. Marvel

Fans who watched the trailer for Daredevil: Born Again will have seen a familiar face among those asking for Matt Murdock’s help. Yusuf Khan, the father of Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel, pops up briefly, meaning that there is a definite crossover between the two shows. How big this crossover is remains to be seen. Because of that, and because there is never a bad reason to recommend watching Ms. Marvel, we suggest you give it a watch before watching Daredevil: Born Again.

Echo

Released on Disney+ in 2024 as the first Marvel Studios series to receive a TV-MA rating. While the focus is on Alaqua Cox’s Echo, both Daredevil and Kingpin show up to help set up Daredevil: Born Again. Of all the series on this list, Echo is probably the most important to watch as it directly sets up the events of Daredevil: Born Again.

Other Daredevil-related shows and movies to watch

We have a lot of love for the Marvel shows that aired on Netflix. Jessica Jones and Luke Cage did a great job with their characters and both had some fantastic performances throughout. However, they don’t add too much to Daredevil’s story and probably won’t have much impact on the events of Daredevil: Born Again; at least, not on season one. If you are tight on time, you can probably safely skip these shows (but do watch them at some point).

Similarly, you don’t necessarily need to watch Spider-Man: No Way Home to jump into Daredevil: Born Again, even though it marked Charlie Cox’s return as Matt Murdock in the MCU after the cancellation of his own series. The same thing is true for Cox’s cameo in Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man – it is a fun nod to the character’s history but probably won’t be important for Daredevil Born Again.

Consider this a meta post-credits scene for Marvel fans - the four key articles you need to read next to continue the thrills:

• How to watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe in release or chronological order
• The best Marvel Comics stories of all time
• All the MCU movies ranked from best to worst
• Our weekly Marvel insider's column, Marvel Matters