Marvel Studios had high hopes for Daredevil: Born Again, positioning it as a major revival of the Netflix-era Daredevil series and a key effort to win back longtime fans. However, despite Variety and Disney painting the numbers as a success, a closer look reveals a starkly different story.
According to Disney, Daredevil: Born Again drew 7.5 million views in its first five days. Variety calls this a “strong launch,” but in reality, this number falls well below expectations for a series of this magnitude.
The Kingpin in the Daredevil: Born Again trailer – YouTube, Marvel Entertainment
For comparison, The Acolyte—a series that performed so poorly it was shelved after one season—managed 11.1 million views in its first week. That was already considered underwhelming, coming in 3 million below Ahsoka. Even Agatha All Along, widely regarded as a disastrous misfire for Marvel streaming, managed 9.3 million in its first week.
This raises serious questions about the future of Marvel’s television projects. If Daredevil: Born Again, with its strong brand recognition and returning fan-favorite cast, can’t outperform some of Marvel’s weakest streaming entries, is the studio truly capable of turning things around? Disney and Variety can attempt to spin these numbers, but the reality is clear—this was supposed to be a major comeback, and instead, it signals further decline.
Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) in Marvel Television’s AGATHA ALL ALONG, exclusively on Disney+. Photo by Chuck Zlotnick. © 2024 MARVEL
READ: Disney Scales Back Snow White U.S. Premiere—No Traditional Red Carpet Media Interviews Allowed
Adding to the issue is Disney’s selective release of streaming data. Unlike platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, which provide detailed metrics, Disney+ releases numbers only when they suit a positive narrative. This makes their claims difficult to verify. Yet even using Disney’s own viewership metrics, Daredevil: Born Again appears to be one of the weakest-performing Marvel debuts on the platform.
At this point, Marvel Studios is facing an uphill battle to regain audience trust. The push to reclaim the momentum of the past is growing more desperate, and projects like Daredevil: Born Again were meant to be the remedy. Instead, with a launch this lackluster, it seems the studio is still struggling to bring audiences back. If Marvel’s legacy characters can’t drive engagement, what does that mean for its future?
Charlie Cox as Daredevil in the Daredevil: Born Again trailer – YouTube, Marvel Entertainment
Disney may continue to shape the narrative, but the numbers don’t lie. If Daredevil: Born Again and its lackluster viewership is being framed as a success, what does that say about the state of Marvel’s streaming strategy?
Are you surprised by the Daredevil: Born Again viewership? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
As far as I know, Agatha and Daredevil have pretty good reviews and feedback. I guess it won’t be much different with Andor.
Disney is cooked forever. No matter what they do.
I’ve seen the first episodes of Born Again, and they’re not good. That show deserves to fail, and Disney should have left Daredevil alone. Or at least hired some people who actually knew what they were doing.
I’m sure disney dreads apathy more than hate since even negative publicity is considered positive. They are now seeing that they have hit the apathy phase with fans. And with that comes to little or no publicity, which could be a death knell. This has been going on for so many years now, I find myself on this site, maybe once or twice a week now. I really have checked out and moved on to other things that have piqued my interests.
I’m still watching it but without any emotional investment. Just to keep on track with the events of Lucasfilm and the franchise. It feels like a train crash in slow motion that never wants to end while you know it has to end at some point. Weird but fascinating in it’s own rights.
Good. Glad that this subversive garbage is failing.
I’m curious what exactly you think is specifically subversive about it, other than it being made by Disney.
“Mom, can I watch the new Daredevil stuff?”
“No, it’s bad for your mind.”
“But you let me watch R rated stuff.”
“And I’d happily let you watch R rated over modern day Disney.”
Can’t use the normal ability to do this, so here. 👍
Once again, we see the incestuous relationship between Hollywoke studios and access media with Variety desperately trying to spin this on Disney’s behalf. The real question is, whom are they trying to convince? Because the numbers say nobody cares about this show.
Holy smokes! I mean, not that any plans whatsoever to watch this but, lower than the acolyte? Hagatha? That’s awesome. Keep up the good work fella’s, by doing absolutely nothing. It’s super-easy to not watch any of it.
[…] That Park Place did some real reporting, crunched the numbers, employed something called “context,” and laid out the facts. […]
[…] That Park Place did some real reporting, crunched the numbers, employed something called “context,” and laid out the facts. […]
[…] That Park Place did some real reporting, crunched the numbers, employed something called “context,” and laid out the facts. […]
[…] That Park Place did some real reporting, crunched the numbers, employed something called “context,” and laid out the facts. […]