I personally am a huge fan of Daredevil he was always one of my faves and until my teen years he was in a tug of war with Batman, Nightwing, and Captain America for my favorite CB Character ever. Cap being the winner in the end and Nightwing holding tight second and Daredevil being a strong 3rd over the Bats. Still third could always be bumped up there with a great film thrown into the fray! With the Cap movie looking quite great and the last 2 Batman films being fantastic, I see promise in a Daredevil Film and would love to see it done well. There are many casting rumors and fan choices out there, as well as a hefty set of fan cast already done on this site but I didn't join the site to not have my opinion heard.
The first film with Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck, lacked the deep love/tragedy story that is Daredevil comics. The Direction taken was that of a cheesy Action CBM. The failure....well....was that the action SUCKED! It was a Kung Fu Movie, without the talented Kung Fu Martial artist to perform the stunts. Daredevil is a Greek tragedy with a Ninja twist. Something that would be fantastic on Film.
I have come to the conclusion that this film could be done in 2 ways. I will Explain my vision of a great action movie with some heart behind it in this article. Heart stopping action with amazing martial arts sequences and dazzling stunts and choreography.
I'll give The Cast choice followed by a rundown of.....why!?!
Daredevil (Matt Murdock) - Jason Statham
He has been rumored to have been interested in a possible re-visioning of the character. At first I said to myself quietly.....why? As I have let time go by I have come to find that he would be a great choice, if he could drop the British accent and Pick up an American one. His raspy voice is perfect for Matt Murdock in my opinion. for those that think he is a bad actor for doing too many action films, well I disagree he is a fantastic actor that would look great in the suit and even better kicking some Hand Ninjas around Hells Kitchen. He would give the movie the very fluid action sequences needed for a film like this. Also he has the DD in costume jaw. lol I say give him some Rogain to fill in the missing hair and let him grow it out. He stands 5'10 and while standing 2 inches shorter then DD he fits the build especially standing side be side to my next pick. He is a capable acrobat and a fantastic martial artist, qualities that are excellent for Daredevil(he was an all around stuntman and High Dive competitor!).
The Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) - James Gandolfini
James Gandolfini is my primary choice for Kingpin, for fairly obvious reasons. He is a great actor through and through. He embodies the crime boss and although he is not quite at the same Physical prowess as Kingpin. There is nothing a high protein diet, a heavy weight power lifting regiment, shoe lifts, some movie magic, and a couple boxing and judo classes can't do to make him look the part. We all know he can act the part! He stand at 6ft closer to 6'l and has more then enough range as an actor.
Elektra Nachios - Rhona Mitra
I can't see anyone else playing the role of Elektra but Rhona Mitra! She is beautiful in every aspect and has the true look to pull off tormented and slightly murderous rich girl trained to be a Ninja Assassin. She is very capable in action sequences, as she has prior martial arts training that dives deeper then just her previous, "femme fatale" roles. She is Elektra and Elektra is Rhona. She is also a very good, yet underrated actress that has done many low budget, smaller roles, along with a few big yet supporting roles. Lets give her a little spotlight.
Foggy Nelson - Jonah Hill
Jonah Hill has the dry/sarcastic humor and awkward fat kid in the room vibe that Foggy is prone to showing. Foggy is also a character who has a tendency to curse and use fowl language, something that Hill is good at. He will definitely even the tone out for Statham and the rest of the cast with his sense of humor.
Karen Page - Amy Smart
Hey....she looks kind of like her. Not to mention that her and Statham have already had, both an on and off screen relationship, with great chemistry on screen.
The Enforcers:
Fancy Dan (Daniel Brito) - Ray Park
Fancy Dan is an Expert Martial Artist with fancy foot work. Ray Park is an Expert Martial Artist with with fancy foot work and experience in CBM's. Yeah hes Definitely my choice.
The Ox (Raymond Bloch) - Kevin Nash or The Ox (Bruno Sanchez) - Dave Bautista
This character has 2 completely different origins. Since he would just be a fun big man fight scene I would go with a pro wrestler. The original was your regular gigantic White guy. The new one is your regular gigantic Dominican guy. Don't care which they use, just use one of those 2 guys.
Montana - Timothy Olyphant
A gun Slinging Cowboy with an expertise in Lassoing his opponents up like a wild hog at a Rodeo show. There are many actors out there that can play a gun slinging cowboy but only one that I think can play a modern day cowboy, the way needed for this role. If you have seen Olyphant on Justified you would get my drift.
Hammer Harrison - Randy Couture
I think there is no one better. He fits the size and look for the character. Hey, we can even revamp it a bit and instead of making him a retired boxer, make him a retired MMA fighter.
The Hand:
White Tiger (Angela Del Toro) - Roselyn Sanchez
White Tiger is a hot Latina. It doesn't narrow the choice down much but with Sanchez dancing history it may help her out with the Fight choreography. I would like to see her play a "Femme Fatale" type character. I took the pic from a fan cast on this site a while back. I can't remember who it was but thank you for the suggestion.
Black Tarantula (Carlos DelMuerto) - Marko Zaror
This is a bit of a change seeing as the character in the comics is 7 ft tall. Me personally being a fan of pro Wrestling growing up, do not like to see 7 foot men doing acrobatic kicks(it just looks weird). The character is a Latin Martial Artist and I think we should have a Latin Martial Artist play him. Zaror is on his way to stardom with his role in Undisputed 3 and his show reels getting more and more hits. He has some corny movies in his background but this isn't a stretch for him. He is 6'3(IMDB notes him as 6 and 1/2 feet but his bio somewhere else has him 6'3 and he looks it in Undisputed 3) with an athletic build. He comes from Chile which borders the characters home country, Argentina. I posted a video reel to showcase his ability and a pic of him in costume for Miracle-man, which I ironically kinda looks like BT.
Kirigi - Daniel Henney
WHAT IS WITH THE 7 Foot Ninjas? lol I personally like this guy and think he would be a good fit in the film. Kigiri is 7 ft tall and 300lbs but I think we can all settle on a 6'2 Japanese guy and not be too overzealous. He is a trained martial artist and has experience with rope play and extravagant stunts. He was also in X-men Origins: Wolverine as Agent Zero. I don't really mind reusing characters but Fox owning the DD and X-men franchises could make this a little harder. Good thing is Typhoid Mary gets to be a mutant if they use her. :D
Hand Ninjas - A bunch of Parkourist/Martial Artist
Face it we need to have a Swarm attack DD at some point, if we do a Ninja Theme. Nothing Better then some parkouring with DD on the roof tops of New York.
Stick - Jeff Speakman
I am a martial artist and a fan of martial arts media. I love to see the master in martial arts movies be played by actual martial artist. Jeff Speakman is one of the best at what he does, and what he does is Kenpo. It is a martial arts that combines the Philosophies of Japanese and Chinese arts and a bit of Danny O'Santos stick fighting....I repeat, Stick Fighting! For those of you who don't know who O'Santos is he is the man that taught Bruce Lee stick fighting(nunchucks, kali/escrima, and Staff). Jeff Speakman is about 52 now and if you ask me, color his hair gray and you have authenticity. As a martial artist myself I am sure Jason Statham would love to work and learn from Speakman. The pic and the Video are pretty old so don't complain about him being young although he still looks about the same with some pounds thrown on but he can trim down and look the part.
Bullseye - Sean Patrick Flanery
I love this guy, in a mostly Heterosexual way. He has the look and the chops to play the psychopathic hard ass with a deadly talent. Another good note to take is he is a Triathlete, a gymnast in his youth, studies ARCHERY, and a Black belt in Karate and Brazilian Jujitsu. My only problem with him is that I may switch him and Statham around in the future. They could both play Bullseye or Daredevil with much success.
It is safe to say this film will have fantastic fight sequences and phenomenal action. This isn't the only way to go with a Daredevil film but it is a good and fun direction to take. This will allow for some of the more outrageous villains and story lines while still keeping the intensity. The movie would not be an origin story but have small flashbacks of his childhood and training, not even in the same manor that the original did. These would be brief and subtle. The plot would be an already established Daredevil with a price on his head being attacked by assassins and on the run. Eventually he will decide to fight back and start handing a** and taking names the way only a Ninja trained, costumed hero can. The great thing about this movie is you would not have to end it as if it is all solved and the hit on his head is done. You would end in DD still being a man marked for death yet now he is ready for anything to come his way. The Sequels main villain would most likely be Bullseye, with this movie introducing him as the final attempt to kill the Devil. If they keep this tone and keep the hit on him, you can have multiple villains in every film without it feeling like Spider-man 3.
Most of DD's villains are Mercenaries or assassins to keep with the ninja theme so this allows very basic histories to be told but many fights while still delivering a solid story for larger character like Kingpin(no pun intended), Bullseye, Elektra, The Hand, and Daredevil himself. Just picture him being lured into an old boxing gym by The Enforcers and then going toe to toe with them one by one. Then flipping and jumping from building to building being chased by 20-30 Hand ninjas. Then Fighting off The Hand elite by himself and finally being confronted by there best, Elektra! The women he still dreams about since there romance in college and her sudden disappearance. In the end helping him in battle. Then the final confrontation that we deserved in the first movie, of Kingpin and DD going at it in a CBM battle to remember. Till the sequel of course when they bring in the big guns of the mercenary world.
Honorable mention For The role of Matt Murdock.
Jeffery Donavan, he has the look, the acting chops, and has a black belt in karate, six years of aikido and year of Brazilian jujitsu.
So let me hear your Thoughts, choices, argument, and Stay alert For My Fan Cast for "The Man Without Fear" based on the graphic novel of the same name and more of a TDK feel.