More than two decades after its release, Daredevil star Ben Affleck looks back on what he considers to be a disappointing Marvel adaptation. Sitting down with GQ to reflect on his extensive filmography, Affleck discussed his time making Daredevil. When asked what drew him to the project, he mentioned his love for the source material and expressed his admiration for his co-stars, including Michael Clarke Duncan, Colin Farrell, and Jennifer Garner. Despite having those elements in place, Affleck admitted Daredevil didn’t turn out as well as it could have, which was a letdown for him as an actor.
“I love the comic book,” Affleck said, explaining why he made Daredevil. “And I loved working with [Michael Clarke Duncan], and Colin, and Jen Garner. It wasn’t the adaptation ultimately that I thought was the best version of what it could have been, and that was disappointing.”
Daredevil arrived in 2003, in the earliest days of the superhero movie boom at the dawn of the 21st century. While X-Men and Spider-Man proved to be hits, Daredevil wasn’t as successful. It received mostly negative reviews (43% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes) and grossed only $179.1 million worldwide against a $78 million production budget. There was never a proper Daredevil sequel, but it did spawn the spinoff Elektra, which was widely panned and struggled at the box office itself.
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Years after Affleck’s film, the Daredevil character became a standout for the Marvel Cinematic Universe on TV — first on Netflix’s Daredevil and then later on Disney+’s Daredevil: Born Again. Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock quickly emerged as a fan-favorite character in the franchise. Affleck admitted he hasn’t seen Cox’s iteration, but wishes the creative team (including his Accountant 2 co-star Jon Bernthal) the best.
The superhero movie landscape was obviously in a very different place when Daredevil premiered in the early 2000s. In many ways, the genre was still trying to find its footing during this stretch. Daredevil came out around the same time as other misfires (Hulk, Fantastic Four) when filmmakers were trying to figure out what worked and what didn’t when bringing these characters to the big screen. In the case of Daredevil, while certain aspects were well-received (including the cast), some felt that the storytelling fell flat. Interestingly, Daredevil found second life when the R-rated director’s cut was released on home media and earned more positive reviews. Affleck’s disappointment with the theatrical cut could possibly stem from the studio’s desire to have a PG-13 version in an attempt to maximize box office profits. The TV shows have demonstrated an R-rated approach fits Daredevil like a glove, so perhaps the movie would have been better served if the director’s cut was what was released in theaters.
Given his enthusiasm for the source material, it’s disappointing Affleck never got to fully realize the best version of Daredevil. At the time, he probably saw it as the ideal meal ticket — a recurring blockbuster role he was also passionate about creatively. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be, enduring a fate similar to the one Affleck’s later tenure as Batman faced. Even though Daredevil didn’t go as well as he hoped, Affleck still carved out a very successful career for himself. His superhero days are likely over, but it’ll be interesting to see where he goes from here.
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