Since the project was first announced, Marvel Studios has made it clear that Daredevil: Born Again will not serve as a continuation of the long-defunct Netflix series, but with three major cast members (that we know of) reprising their roles, it can be difficult to view the show as a full reboot.
Erik Oleson, who boarded Daredevil as showrunner on the third and final season, was asked about the Disney+ series during an interview with Screen Rant, and admitted that he still views Born Again as "season 4."
"I knew it was going to happen just from rumblings through friends in the grapevine of the Marvel family. But I really don't know what they're planning yet. We used pieces of Born Again in our season. I still call [Daredevil: Born Again] season 4, but they're trying to insist it isn't, so I'll go along with whatever they want to call it. I'm very happy that Charlie [Cox] and Vincent, and hopefully more of our Marvel friends, will get a chance to go make more of the show. I'm a huge fan of them; I'm a huge fan of the show. I look forward to seeing what it is. I hope it's great, let me put it that way."
Rumors point to Born Again being developed as a "soft reboot," meaning it won't be beholden to what came before, but nor will it directly contradict anything from the Netflix show.
Based on what we've already seen, we're not sure if that's entirely accurate (the version of Wilson Fisk that debuted in Hawkeye was significantly different to Vincent D'Onofrio's earlier portrayal, for example), but we may not find out for certain until the series premiere.
Oleson was also asked if he thinks Born Again will be able to go as dark as the Netflix show (not a chance), which could get pretty violent and dealt with some themes that would likely be a bit full-on for an MCU-set story.
"We had the ability to go to some dark places, and I'm not sure what a Disney+ version of the show is gonna look like. But we'll see. There are lots of different iterations of that character in the comic books too, so it's like, 'Is it more yellow? Or is it more...?' Who knows? But I wish them the best of luck, and I'm totally stoked to watch."
Daredevil: Born Again will be loosely based on the '80s Marvel Comics series of the same name by Frank Miller and David Mazzuchelli, but is not expected to be an overly faithful adaptation. Despite some significant changes to the story, "Daredevil versus Wilson Fisk, aka the Kingpin, remains the focal point."
Matt Corman and Chris Ord are on board as writers and executive producers. No premiere date has been announced, but the 18-episode epic is expected to bow in the spring of 2024.