Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 Episode 7's Major Death Wasn't Planned — A Last-Minute CGI Change Sealed It

Quick heads-up: spoilers for Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 ahead.

Season 1 of Born Again got torn down and rebuilt during the 2023 strikes pause. Season 2? Much smoother ride. But not drama- free. When they were putting together Episode 7, 'The Hateful Darkness', showrunner Dario Scardapane realized one big thing: Daniel Blake was not walking out of that apartment alive. So Michael Gandolfini's character got the bullet that, apparently, always made more sense.

The plan that almost aired

Arty Froushan, who plays Buck Cashman, told Variety that in the original version of Episode 7, Daniel actually survived his showdown with Buck. Buck would then report to Mayor Wilson Fisk and flat-out lie, claiming he'd killed Daniel when he hadn't. Scardapane added that if Daniel had lived, he'd have stayed in politics because the new interim mayor would have refused his resignation. That was the track.

• Daniel survives the apartment encounter in the early cut
• Buck lies to Fisk, saying he killed Daniel
• Daniel remains in City Hall; the interim mayor rejects his resignation
• They even shot scenes of Daniel after that encounter
• Once the pivot happened, VFX added a gunshot so the scene plays as a kill

Why they flipped the switch

Scardapane looked at that initial version and called it, to paraphrase, kind of meh and not much of a story. Then he broke the news to Gandolfini, who immediately agreed it was the better move.

'Dude, I've got the worst news,' Scardapane told Gandolfini. 'I know exactly what you're gonna say, and it's the right choice,' Gandolfini replied.

They'd already filmed material of Daniel after the apartment scene, but it felt like the show was suddenly following the wrong thread. The team loved the character, which is probably why they hesitated. In the end, the VFX department dropped in the gunshot, and that was that.

Why killing Daniel works in the story

This isn't just shock value. Earlier in Season 2, the show makes a point of Fisk's biggest vulnerability: he doesn't have a true successor. Daniel looked like the heir apparent for a while — closest thing Fisk had to an understudy — but in 'The Hateful Darkness', he proves he can't stomach the kind of ugliness that defines Kingpin. He refuses to lead BB Urich — someone he actually cares about — to her death. He lets her go and takes the consequence himself. That's Daniel actively rejecting Fisk's path.

There's a nice echo here to the Netflix era: Kingpin murdered BB's uncle, Ben Urich. Daniel protecting BB underlines that he isn't built like Fisk, despite running in his orbit.

And yes, it tracks for Buck too

Buck and Daniel got closer this season, but Buck was never his buddy. His two goals with Daniel were to corrupt him and keep leverage handy for when he stepped out of line. Letting Daniel skate after betraying Fisk's administration would have been out of character. Buck doesn't enjoy pulling the trigger, but he does the job.

What we lost vs. what we gained

Would I have watched more Gandolfini in the Season 2 finale and maybe a Season 3? Absolutely. But dragging Daniel along after he made his choice likely means thinner material for the actor and a muddier arc for the character. Ending it here is cleaner, sadder, and ultimately stronger. The creative team seems unanimous that it was the right call — and for once, the behind-the-scenes switch actually sharpened the story on screen.