Spoilers for Hawkeye and Spider-Man: No Way Home follow.
For years, fans have craved an answer as to whether Marvel’s Netflix series – stuck in limbo since Jessica Jones’ cancellation in 2019 – are a canonical part of the MCU.
Even during its heyday, the likes of Daredevil and Luke Cage played fast and loose with the connections to its cinematic cousins. The Battle of New York took place in that corner of the universe, but very little else seem to affect it – and vice-versa.
But things have changed. Daredevil (Charlie Cox) has shown up in Spider-Man: No Way Home, while Vincent D’Onofrio has donned the white suit of Kingpin once more to portray the iconic underworld crime boss in Hawkeye.
What does that all mean for those Netflix shows? It’s a question we recently put to D’Onofrio – and his answer proves enlightening, even if it doesn’t quite put the debate to bed once and for all.
"They’re trying their best to keep Daredevil as part of the canon," D’Onofrio says. "Hawkeye is part of the canon of what we did at Daredevil."
He continues, "It’s not always going to be 100 per cent. There’s a lot of connecting the dots which Marvel is really good at. There’s certain things we can and can’t [do], especially if we make changes to his strength like we have. I’m approaching it as if it’s after the Blip, everybody’s returned, and it’s the same emotionally and character-wise. I play him exactly the way he was in Daredevil."
Read on for more from our interview with Vincent D’Onofrio. Finished the series? Here’s our guide to the Hawkeye ending.