Marvel’s Daredevil Netflix TV series has confirmed a replacement for Drew Goddard in Steven S DeKnight as Goddard continues pre-production on The Sinister Six.
Deadline reports that Goddard’s departure as series showrunner and director was confirmed back in March, as his duties on The Amazing Spider-Man spin-off The Sinister Six would have interfered. Goddard has written the first two episodes of Daredevil and Marvel’s statement stresses that he will stay on as executive producer.
DeKnight will take the reins as showrunner and executive producer. Like Goddard, he’s also a Whedon-verse veteran, having served as a writer and producer on both Angel and Dollhouse, as well as writing four episodes of Buffy: The Vampire Slayer. More recently he created Spartacus: War Of The Damned for Starz.
Deadline described Marvel as “looking for an experienced showrunner to shepherd the series,” and DeKnight’s appointment makes a lot of sense, especially as their shared past with Whedon suggests that there won’t be a sudden radical change in tone or direction. Unlike Edgar Wright’s sudden departure from Ant-Man, the news that Goddard is simply too busy to write, direct and run a TV series and write and direct a tentpole franchise spin-off is somewhat unsurprising.
Daredevil will air on Netflix in 2015. Find out more about the comics that inspired the series with new digital magazine Uncanny Comics. You can buy Daredevil: Born Again by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli for £10.34 at Amazon.co.uk.
