'Daredevil' Season 3: NYCC Reveals Secret Behind Fisk's Voice, Teases 'Born Again'

A lot went down at the Daredevil Season 3 panel on Saturday at NYCC. Marvel TV head Jeph Loeb rolled out teaser after teaser, interviewing the cast in between each. Fans previewed a generous amount of new footage, and there's alot to talk about. Here are all the interesting tidbits you might have missed, including references to "Born Again," the secret behind Vincent D'Onofrio's iconic Fisk voice, and more.

Bullseye

Jeph Loeb gave Wilson Bethel's mystery character an official name: Bullseye. Just like the comics, his civilian name is Benjamin Poindexter, but in the series, he goes by Agent Dex. He's an FBI agent by day, but also a Daredevil copycat working for Wilson Fisk by night.

"Unfortunately for Dex, he gets taken under Fisk's wing and the result of that interaction is not so positive," Wilson Bethel said during the panel, before showrunner Erik Olseon elaborated on the inspiration behind the character.

"It's one of the aspects of fear and how does somebody like Wilson Fisk turn somebody who could become a productive member of society, and is clearly a heroic member of the FBI, into this iconic villain. Fisk pulls psychological manipulation on him and worms his way into Dex's life in a way that will feel real and like it could actually happen," Olseon said.

Right before an epic clip of Bullseye vs Daredevil played on the big-screen, Charlie Cox ran over and drew a huge bullseye on Bethel's head. Watch below.

"Born Again"

Joanne Whalley made her first public appearance with the cast of Daredevil, and her character of Sister Maggie automatically directs the nerd brain to a very famous storyline from the comics: "Born Again," from Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli.

In the "Born Again" source material, Daredevil is almost killed by Wilson Fisk. His mother, Maggie (whom he does not know at this point) nurses him back to health, just like we've seen in the Season 3 teasers and the final scene of The Defenders.

"I had no idea what to expect," said Whalley, admitting she's never read a comic book in her entire life. "I don't know who anyone is dressed up as today. But I have to say, I had the most wonderful experience. I thought it was going to be very different and not so great. I really liked the scripts, they were incredible, but I thought it would be a bit dodgy. I've never been on a job where every member of the cast and crew was so excited to see each script come out; The amount of joy every time we had a new one."

Karen Page's Backstory

Right at the end of the panel, Deborah Ann Woll, who plays Karen Page, confirmed Season 3 will explore Karen's personal backstory. This storyline has been a long time coming, and was last teased last season.

At the end of Daredevil Season 2, Karen found a folder on her desk. Inside was an old newspaper with the headline, 'Mystery Accident Causes Teen Fatality.' The newspaper article refers to the death of her 16-year-old brother, Kevin Paxton Page. The tip comes came from now-dead New York Bulletin colleague Ben Urich, which means the mystery has to have some truth to it. That's where the comic books come in.

Karen's father, Paxton Page, first appears in a 1969 issue of Daredevil by Roy Thomas and Gene Colan. A crazy scientist, he fakes his own death to assume the alias Death's Head, and develop the cobalt bomb. When Karen goes back to Vermont to investigate his death, Daredevil follows her. Death's Head ultimately dies saving Karen during a tussle with Daredevil.

It's anyone's guess whether Karen's backstory in the series will follow that same path, but it's clear Woll's character is searching for something missing in her life. "Karen's never really had a home, so I felt really adrift," Woll said at the panel. "If I allowed myself to believe he was gone, I would have nothing. I was holding on to him for so long because the alternative is just too much to take."

Vincent D'Onofrio's Fisk Voice

During an audience Q&A session, Fisk actor Vincent D'Onofrio revealed how he accomplishes that deep, distinctive tone associated with his character both in the comics and in the series.

"One of the things Marvel wanted me to know was at the voice was very important," he said. "All I can say is that the script influenced me to find the voice in a emotional way. And so as a method actor, I did what's called an effective memory. You bring an event in your life up, you recreate it, and the emotion that filled me because of that event in my life, I turned those emotions into a guttural sound that came out of my voice. And then I speak."

A greater message

Before closing, Oleson explained that the roles of Matt, Fisk, Dex, Foggy and Karen all work in tandem to bring a larger political message to light.

"The Karen and the Foggy storylines play a major role in the prescription for how to defeat fear and the narcissistic tyrants who would use fear against us to divide us against one another. The prescription I saw was the power of the free press, the power of the law and the power of collective action, friendship, love and faith.

Daredevil Season 3 arrives Oct. 19.