16 Perfect Superhero TV Show Casting Choices That Nailed Their Characters
5. Charlie Cox - Matt Murdock (Daredevil)
I'd say it takes a lot to live up to one of Ben Affleck's performances, but considering Daredevil came out prior to the actor/director's more... critically well-received days, it's probably not a statement worth making.
I mean, I can enjoy Affleck's Murdock to an extent. There's nothing grossly wrong about it, and it's a little bland, but it's still enjoyable.
That's definitely not how I would describe his successor's performance however. It only takes a few minutes of watching Netflix's Daredevil to realise that Charlie Cox gets the character. Not only does he look the part, but the actor nails each and every aspect of Matt Murdock. He knows how to convey both the fierce tenacity of the character in and out of the courtroom, as well as the hero's more emotionally vulnerable moments. It makes for a performance that's both intoxicating and sympathetic, and firmly cements Daredevil as being among the best in the biz when it comes to superheroes.
There's also the matter of Cox's ability to convincingly portray blindness. In preparing for the role, the actor extensively researched the condition and the various coping mechanisms blind people use to get by on a daily basis. Simple touches like the character dabbing his hand in water to mark where he's been in a room, to the brail add-on to his laptop, all further add to the show's sensitive portrayal of blindness. Past portrayals have of course depicted Murdock in a similar vein, but not to the extent in which Cox has. It's a fittingly wonderful performance for an equally wonderful character, and a relative bright spot in an otherwise dark segment of the MCU.