Last Friday’s Disney Plus Day brought the official confirmation of Echo, a Hawkeye spinoff series set to star Alaqua Cox as Maya Lopez, the MCU’s first-ever deaf leading hero. Seeing as the character has never had her own comic book, Echo might seem an unlikely choice to build a Disney Plus show around, but the decision makes more sense if the rumors are true and it’s really something of a back-door Daredevil season four.
You might have heard that Charlie Cox (no relation) and Vincent D’Onofrio are rumored to return in Echo as their fan-favorite Netflix characters Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk, in keeping with Maya’s connection with the vigilante and villain in the comics. We’ve now gotten our first hint from an official source that these rumors are bang on the money, as Echo showrunner Marion Dayre has indicated that Cox and D’Onofrio really are involved.
In her Instagram stories, Dayre shared a fan account’s post discussing their excitement for Echo. Nothing too spoiler-y about that, right? Well, there wouldn’t be if the fan post didn’t mention DD and Fisk. Sure, Dayre isn’t necessarily saying the pair are in it, but by sharing this fan’s excitement to see them in the show, she’s certainly adding authenticity to the claims. See a screenshot of her story for yourself below (via @cosmic_marvel on Twitter):
Dayre’s update follows the news that the Echo writers’ room includes veterans from the Daredevil and The Punisher teams, namely Dara Resnik and Ken Kristensen. Again, this doesn’t necessarily tell us anything concrete, but it would definitely help to have writers on hand that had previously handled these characters and their world and could help aid in their transition to the wider MCU. At the very least, it tells us that Echo will likely have a similar tone to the Defenders-verse shows.
Before Echo gets here, likely sometime in 2022, catch Alaqua Cox’s Marvel debut in Hawkeye, premiering next Wednesday on Disney Plus.
