Charlie Cox Says THIS is What Makes a Modern-Day Hero
Charlie Cox is no stranger to heroic roles. In his new Netflix series, Treason, he plays Adam Lawrence, a brave MI6 agent who fights to expose a dangerous political plot. When talking about his character, and his ongoing role as Daredevil, Cox revealed what he thinks it takes to be a modern-day hero.
Charlie Cox plays a different kind of hero in ‘Treason’
Cox is most known for playing Matt Murdock in Netflix’s Daredevil and The Defenders series — a role he recently reprised in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Spider-Man: No Way Home and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
In the Netflix series and the MCU, Matt Murdock is a lawyer who helps put bad guys away in the courtroom. On the street, he’s Daredevil, a masked hero who’s selfless, humble, and never aims to kill.
Cox’s hero in Treason is slightly different from the Marvel vigilante. Adam is the Deputy Director of MI6, and when he assumes temporary command of the agency, Adam makes some highly questionable decisions that have major repercussions for both him and his country.
Charlie Cox reveals what makes a modern-day hero
When talking about his role in Treason, Cox revealed how he approached the character and what he believes is the essence of the modern-day hero. He noted that he sees heroism as something requiring courage and self-sacrifice, along with a realistic level of imperfection.
“I went back and forth on this,” Cox told NME. “I ended up feeling that what makes him a hero is that he’s able to ultimately do the right thing at great cost to himself. And he’s able to admit to and recognize past failings. I think that is the essence of modern-day heroes because nobody’s perfect.”
Charlie Cox starts filming ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ in February 2023
Cox returns as the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen in Marvel’s upcoming series, Daredevil: Born Again. But he told NME that this hero will be redefined, and may be slightly less violent than the Netflix version.
“This has to be a reincarnation, it has to be different, otherwise why are we doing it?” Cox said. “My opinion is this character works best when he’s geared towards a slightly more mature audience. My instinct is that on Disney+ it will be dark but it probably won’t be as gory.”
Cox acknowledged how some fans of the Netflix series may want to hold on to the previous version. “I would say to those people, we’ve done that,” the actor explained. “Let’s take the things that really worked, but can we broaden? Can we appeal to a slightly younger audience without losing what we’ve learned about what works?”
Cox hasn’t revealed many details about Daredevil: Born Again, other than the fact that his Daredevil co-star Vincent D’Onofrio will reprise his role as Kingpin Wilson Fisk. However, the actor did confirm filming will begin in early 2023 in New York City.
“[Marvel] said to me, ‘We’re going to be shooting in 2023’,” Cox recalled. “I said, ‘Great, when?’ They said, ‘All 2023’. I start shooting in February and finish in December.”
Cox also revealed that the series will be 18 episodes long. And he suggested the show will follow Matt Murdock in his day-to-day life as an attorney.
“I’m fascinated to discover why they’ve chosen to do 18,” the Marvel star mused. “I’m imagining there’s going to be an element to it that is like the old-school procedural show. Not necessarily case-of-the-week, but something where we go really deep into Matt Murdock the lawyer, and get to see what his life is like.”
“I think there’s something quite interesting about that,” Cox added. “To spend a lot of time in a superhero’s day-to-day life and you really earn the moments when he suits up.”
Daredevil: Born Again is scheduled to premiere in 2024. Treason is currently streaming on Netflix.
