First, Marvel found its Daredevil. Now, the studio has its Kingpin.
The pieces are quickly falling into place for Marvel’s Daredevil series on Netflix, with Marvel.com announcing that actor Vincent D’Onofrio has joined the cast of the series as Wilson Fisk, the criminal known as “The Kingpin of Crime.” D’Onofrio’s role will serve as the chief antagonist to Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock, the blind lawyer who fights crime at night as Daredevil.
Marvel described the Kingpin in the upcoming series as “a powerful businessman whose interests in the future of Hell’s Kitchen will bring him into conflict with the blind attorney, Matt Murdock, and his alter ego Daredevil.”
Created in 1967 by Stan Lee and John Romita, Sr. as a foil for Spider-Man, Kingpin eventually shifted his attention away from the web slinger and over to Hell’s Kitchen, quickly becoming one of Daredevil’s chief adversaries in the Marvel Comics canon. In the 2003 live-action film, Kingpin was portrayed by actor Michael Clarke Duncan.
“We’re incredibly proud to have an actor with the gravitas and versatility of Vincent joining Marvel’s Daredevil in such an integral role,” said Jeph Loeb, Marvel’s Head of Television, in an official announcement. “Wilson Fisk is an iconic villain whose cunning and power make him the dangerous equal of our hero.”
Best known for his roles in Men In Black, The Cell, and Full Metal Jacket, D’Onofrio was nominated for an Emmy in 1998 for his guest role in an episode of Homicide: Life on the Street.
Production on Daredevil is expected to begin this summer, with a premiere currently slated for 2015 on Netflix.
