While Marvel Studios has been credited with delivering some of the most epic superhero pieces to Hollywood, it has also been criticized for making some really terrible decisions – some of which have already backfired and some of which fans are expecting to do so real soon. Unfortunately enough, Daredevil: Born Again has been a victim of it as well.
For one, one of the creative decisions taken by them includes getting rid of a really epic character in the early stages of his introduction in the television-verse. But fans feel this decision was nothing short of a fumble on their hands, for the character was one who could have gone on to become the best villain after Kingpin in Matt Murdock’s universe: Cottonmouth.
Marvel could have e made Cottonmouth the big bad in Daredevil: Born Again
Back in the late 2010s, when Luke Cage first came out, it brought along one of the most iconic badass villains from the Marvel universe: Cottonmouth aka Cornell Stokes. A notorious criminal figure in Harlem and the leader of the Stokes Crime Family, he was introduced as the owner of the nightclub Harlem’s Paradise.
However, soon after his criminal activities began to unravel after a failed gun sale, he became the titular lead’s enemy as he started tracking down the people responsible for the failed gun trade. But his end was brought about a bit too soon despite his being one of the biggest crime bosses in Harlem, and it wasn’t even at the hands of Luke Cage.
Rather, because he lost money due to the failed gun sale, Stokes’ organization was put at risk when Diamondback threatened to take over, which was followed by his own cousin Mariah Dillard murdering him and taking over his criminal empire. This, of course, did anything but sit well with the die-hard fans, who are now complaining about the same.
For one, besides the fact that he was killed off a bit too early on without even getting the chance to potentially serve as the next big bad after Kingpin in this upcoming series of the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen, fans are also enraged that it served as wasted potential for the actor who embodied the character in the first place: Mahershala Ali.
Fans aren’t happy with Marvel’s fumble with Mahershala Ali and his character’s lost potential
Since he was originally introduced as Cottonmouth in the Marvel verse, Ali had a lot of potential to continue the iconic villain’s storyline and maybe even earn a chance to debut in Daredevil: Born Again as the next baddie after Wilson Fisk. However, not only did the studios kill that character, but they also don’t seem to be anywhere close to making his Blade reboot movie.
That said, taking to X, fans aren’t hesitating to let known their disappointment about the same with their disapproving and sarcastic reactions:
The biggest fumble in Marvel Television was killing off Cottonmouth pic.twitter.com/Q0860NfKJW
— Parris (@vicious696) February 26, 2025
at least they didn’t waste him and definitely are making a Blade movie with him. Any day now.
— Heavy Spoilers (@heavyspoilers) February 27, 2025
put him in a cell with Kingpin! anything but kill off such an amazing villain in half a season lol
— Parris (@vicious696) February 27, 2025
Facts they stumbled with the story after. I couldn’t finish season 2 it was trash
— Rafael De La Ghetto (@Foobaca) February 28, 2025
show fell off immediately afterwards
— John Newblood (@DaveOshry) February 27, 2025
Knocking off Cottonmouth was a major fumble in ther Luke Cage series. At the very least, writers could’ve had his character sent over or something so there’s potential to return later.
— DominicHorne.eth (@iamDominicHorne) February 28, 2025
Daredevil vs cotton mouth could’ve fed families
— Baby Yeshu’a (@WHOISSCRAP) February 27, 2025
Over the years, Marvel has fumbled one too many times with iconic characters, so having them mess up Cottonmouth’s storyline without even allowing him a chance to battle Daredevil was kind of only inevitable. But even then, it still stings as badly as ever, and only a reintroduction of the actor or character in one way or another could heal up this wound.
Daredevil: Born Again is set to hit Disney+ on March 4, 2025.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
