Daredevil (2003) is a superhero film adapted from Marvel Comics, directed by Mark Steven Johnson and starring Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner. The film is a standalone production outside any shared cinematic universe and was released by 20th Century Fox. Audience rating: 5.3/10.
What is Daredevil (2003) about?
A blinded young boy grows up to become a New York City attorney by day and the costumed vigilante Daredevil by night, seeking justice against the criminal underworld of Hell's Kitchen.
Released in 2003, Daredevil was directed by Mark Steven Johnson and produced under the 20th Century Fox banner. The film occupies a significant place within the Independent — telling a self-contained story outside of shared-continuity superhero franchises.
The film features lead performances from Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner, Michael Clarke Duncan, among others, anchoring a story that adapts characters first brought to life in Marvel Comics. Its source material gives the film a foundation rooted in decades of published storytelling, which Johnson and the creative team interpret through a cinematic lens.
The film's 5.3 audience rating indicates a mixed response. Even so, it holds interest as part of the broader Independent catalogue and for how it fits into the lineage of Marvel Comics-based cinema.
What happens in Daredevil (2003)? — Full Plot
We open with Matt Murdock (Ben Affleck) on Wall Street rooftops as Daredevil, lying broken from a fight. Through flashback, we see Matt as a teenage boy in Hell's Kitchen. His father — Battlin' Jack Murdock, a struggling boxer — has been pressured by mobster Wesley Owen Welch and his goon to throw a fight. Jack refuses. Welch's goons attack Matt in retaliation; Matt is hit by a chemical-truck driver — the chemicals blind him but enhance his other senses to superhuman levels.
Matt becomes Daredevil — a vigilante in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, operating outside the law to protect those that legal channels cannot. He works as a defense attorney by day, leveraging his super-senses to detect lies in client testimony.
Matt meets Elektra (Jennifer Garner) — a young Greek-American woman who has been training in martial arts since childhood. They fall in love after she beats him in a public sparring match. Elektra's father is a wealthy businessman.
Elektra's father is murdered by Bullseye (Colin Farrell) — an Irish assassin with perfect aim who works for Kingpin (Michael Clarke Duncan). Kingpin runs the New York criminal underworld. Bullseye is contracted to remove Daredevil from the streets.
Elektra, in vengeance, tracks Bullseye. She fights him in a brutal rooftop sequence — but is killed when Bullseye uses Daredevil's billy club against her. Matt, arriving moments too late, finds Elektra dead. He vows revenge.
The final battle takes place at Kingpin's Manhattan penthouse. Daredevil confronts Bullseye and Kingpin. Bullseye is defeated when Daredevil drops a building's heavy decorative chandelier on him. Kingpin is left for the police to handle. Daredevil emerges as a public vigilante hero of Hell's Kitchen.
Daredevil (2003) grossed $179 million globally on a $78 million budget — modest commercial success. Critics were largely negative; Affleck's casting was widely criticized. A 2004 director's cut significantly expanded the film and is widely considered a marked improvement. Daredevil returned to live-action in Netflix's Daredevil (2015-2018) and the upcoming MCU integration.
Who stars in Daredevil (2003)?
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What are some facts about Daredevil (2003)?
Daredevil released in 2003, placing it within the 2000s era of comic book cinema — a decade that marked the modern superhero cinema revolution.
Directed by Mark Steven Johnson, the film was produced by 20th Century Fox and adapts source material from Marvel Comics.
The principal cast features Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner, with key supporting roles played by Michael Clarke Duncan, Colin Farrell.
The film belongs to Independent — an independent / standalone production, not tied to a shared cinematic universe.
Daredevil carries an audience rating of 5.3 — a mixed reception that highlights the divisive nature of superhero film adaptations.
The Marvel Comics source material for Daredevil has been in continuous publication for decades, giving filmmakers a rich well of storylines, character arcs, and iconography to draw upon.
Films from this era combined practical stunts with the rising CGI industry — many sequences would be impossible with either technology alone.
Daredevil is catalogued on Movies on Comics among our collection of 162 comic book films spanning 48 years of cinema — from Richard Donner's 1978 Superman to the present day.
