Daredevil's Vanessa actor "never really understood" why she was initially recast in Born Again: "I thought there was so much more to explore with her"

Ayelet Zurer, the original Vanessa actor from Netflix's Daredevil, is back in Daredevil: Born Again – but that wasn't always the case.

Initially, Sandrine Holt played the role of Kingpin's wife in the Disney Plus series, a decision seemingly driven by the desire for a completely fresh start in the MCU aside from leads Charlie Cox and Vincent D'Onofrio.

One creative overhaul later (a seismic shift that saw Born Again's original writers and directors depart the project) and Zurer was drafted back in and shot several new scenes with Kingpin actor Vincent D'Onofrio.

On the decision not to bring her back, Zurer told TVLine, "I never really quite understood why they made that decision to not keep not just me but more almost all the actors but Vincent and Charlie."

"But I can say that when they did change the creative and decided to go back to the original cast, I was very, very happy to join. Because I really like that character, and I thought there was so much more to explore with her."

Those new sides to Vanessa are present in the opening few episodes, entries that reveal how the art dealer handled Kingpin's criminal empire in his extended absence, plus her history with a man called Adam.

"Once we dove in, I found Vanessa to be a way deeper character, because she is dealing with some new aspects of their relationship – trust, and honesty – that it made it very interesting for me to find ways to perform it," Zurer said.

Daredevil: Born Again is currently streaming on Disney Plus. For more on the show's plans – including an upcoming double bill – you'll need the Daredevil: Born Again release schedule.

If you're still in a Marvel mood, dive into our guides on how to watch the Marvel movies in order and the Marvel timeline.