| Wilson Fisk | |
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| Marvel Cinematic Universe character | |
.jpg) Vincent D'Onofrio as Wilson Fisk / Kingpin in promotional material forDaredevil | |
| First appearance |
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| Based on | |
| Adapted by | Drew Goddard |
| Portrayed by |
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| In-universe information | |
| Alias | Kingpin |
| Title | Mayor of New York City |
| Affiliation |
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| Family |
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| Spouse | Vanessa Fisk |
Wilson Grant Fisk is a fictional character portrayed byVincent D'Onofrio in theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)media franchise, based on theMarvel Comicscharacter of the same name. Introduced as a powerfulcrime boss and businessman nicknamed theKingpin, Fisk is put at odds with the vigilanteDaredevil, who seeks to expose his activities.
Fisk has had multiple partnerships, having allied himself withEleanor Bishop,Kazi Kazimierczak, andBenjamin Poindexter, and mentored his adopted nieceMaya Lopez. He also marriedVanessa Fisk, and became theMayor of New York City. His criminal activities have brought the attention of other superheroes and vigilantes, includingFrank Castle,Clint Barton,Kate Bishop, andJack Duquesne.
D'Onofrio first appeared as the character in theNetflix seriesDaredevil (2015–2018), which was produced byMarvel Television. He went on to appear in theDisney+ seriesHawkeye (2021),Echo (2024), andDaredevil: Born Again (2025–present), all produced byMarvel Studios. D'Onofrio's performance as Fisk has been critically praised, garnering aSaturn Awardnomination in 2016. In 2019, Rolling Stone declared Fisk the 26th greatest TV villain of all time.[1]
As a boy, Wilson Grant Fisk and his mother wereemotionally andphysically abused by his father,Bill, until Fisk killed him with a hammer.[2] His mother,Marlene Vistain, helped him cover up the murder. Fisk grows up wanting to makeHell's Kitchen a better place, where there are no "bad" people like his father, and plans to buy the entire neighborhood, demolish it, and build it up better.
By 2007, Fisk establishes himself as a criminal businessman, and goes into business withWilliam Lopez and his criminal gang, theTracksuit Mafia. He grows close with William's daughter,Maya, whom he treats like a daughter. Fisk also helpsDerek Bishop through a tough financial situation. In 2012, after theBattle of New York and Derek's death, Fisk goes into business with Derek's wife,Eleanor Bishop, to pay off Derek's debt.
In 2015, Fisk receives opposition from lawyersMatt Murdock andFoggy Nelson. His rivalry with Daredevil (who is secretly Murdock) and relationship withVanessa Marianna cause his allies to lose faith in him and attempt to poison Vanessa. Before being exposed by journalistBen Urich, Fisk kills him. His assistantJames Wesley is also killed by Murdock's secretaryKaren Page. His dealings are exposed to theFBI by a whistle-blower that Murdock protected. He attempts to escape custody but is defeated in combat by Daredevil and incarcerated atRyker's Island.
Eight months later, Fisk works to gain control of the inmates while being visited by his lawyerBenjamin Donovan. WhenFrank Castle is sent to Ryker's Island, Fisk manipulates him into killing a rival inmate who happened to have knowledge of Castle's family's murder, and later orchestrates Castle's escape, after firstly having him massacre an entire cell block of prisoners.
In 2017, Fisk cuts a deal with FBI AgentRay Nadeem to become their informant in exchange for a house arrest deal at the Presidential Hotel and for Vanessa to not be incriminated for Fisk's crimes. Fisk learns of Murdock's identity as Daredevil and starts swaying some of the FBI to his side, including the mentally unstableBenjamin "Dex" Poindexter, whom he hires to pose as Daredevil. After a video of Nadeem posthumously testifying against him leaks at his wedding to Vanessa, he gets into a three-way fight with Daredevil and Poindexter, who went rogue after hearing Fisk orchestrated the murder of Julia, a woman he was obsessed with. Fisk shatters Poindexter's spine but is defeated by Murdock. He accepts a bargain to return to Ryker's Island and not harm Murdock's loved ones in exchange for Vanessa's safety from prosecution.
In 2018, Fisk survivesthe Blip and has been acquitted following the FBI corruption scandal. He went on to rebuild his criminal empire, re-allying himself with the Tracksuit Mafia and reorganizing their operations to carry out further criminal activity from within a remote base of operations, doubling as an auto shop named "Fat Man Auto Repair". During this time, Fisk dispatches an informant to alert formerAvenger-turned-vigilanteClint Barton of the Tracksuit Mafia's operations and hideout, allowing Barton to kill every residing member within, including William.
In 2021, Fisk begins mentoring a grieving and rebellious Maya, enlisting her into the Tracksuit Mafia, of which she later takes command.
In December 2024, Eleanor's daughterKate assists Barton in dismantling the Tracksuit Mafia. Rattled by Barton's investigation, Eleanor attempts to blackmail Fisk to end their partnership, to which Fisk dispatchesKazi Kazimierczak and the Tracksuit Mafia to kill her. He also reluctantly orders them to kill Maya as well, after she learns from Barton that Fisk orchestrated her father's death. On Christmas Eve, Fisk locates Eleanor and attempts to kill her, but is stopped and defeated by Kate. After fleeing the scene, Fisk is confronted by Maya, who shoots him in the head.
Five months later, in 2025, Fisk survives Maya's gun shot, and recovers in a hospital, wearing an eyepatch. Fisk orders his men not to kill Maya and that same night he meets with her and offers her his empire if she accompanies him to New York. Maya attempts to kill Fisk, but sympathizes with him after he tells her that he killed his father for being abusive to his mother. After Maya refuses to go with him to New York, Fisk kidnaps Chula and Bonnie and tells her that he will kill the rest of her family. Maya, Chula, and Bonnie fight against Fisk's men and Maya takes Fisk to a memory of when his father mistreated his mother, asking him to return the hammer and free himself from the pain. Fisk refuses to let go of his past memories and flees once again. On his return to New York, Fisk observes a news story about the ideal candidate for the nextMayor of New York City, which sparks Fisk's interest.
In late 2026, Fisk announces his intentions to run as mayor of New York with an anti-vigilantism agenda, hoping to move beyond his criminal empire, which Vanessa had been operating in his absence. He is aided by associates Sheila Rivera,Buck Cashman, andDaniel Blake. During a public meet, Fisk cautions Murdock about returning to his activities as Daredevil, as he has retired from vigilantism since Nelson's murder at the hands of Poindexter a year prior. Following his victory, Fisk confronts Vanessa about her affair with a man named Adam, but promises not to kill him due to his change of heart.
In 2027, he and Vanessa undergomarriage counselling with therapistHeather Glenn, whom is also dating Murdock. He initiates a renovation of theRed Hook Pier into an industrial complex. During a party with New York's socialites, including Eleanor's ex-fiancé and secret vigilanteJack Duquesne, Fisk attempts to propose his Red Hook renewal project to attendees, who reject his initiatives. When informed about the serial killerMuse, Fisk assembles the Anti-Vigilante Task Force (AVTF), composed of corrupt police officers who use Castle's Punisher logo, to take measures beyond jurisdiction, much to the concern ofNYPD Commissioner Gallo. Fisk is informed about Daredevil's return and Muse's identity to be Glenn's troubled client Bastian Cooper. When Daredevil goes to rescue Glenn from Cooper, Fisk sends the AVTF to Glenn's office. Cooper is killed by Glenn and Fisk gives the credit to the AVTF, publicly declaring them to be heroes. He also has Blake threaten Urich's niece and journalistBB into removing eyewitness mentions of Daredevil's involvement in the incident from her blog.
After being threatened by Luca, one of the crime dons in the Five Families, Fisk has Vanessa send him into a trap to be killed by Cashman. Fisk reveals to Vanessa he has Adam imprisoned and watches as she kills him, affirming her love for Fisk. During an inaugural ball benefitting the Red Hook project, Murdock dives in front of Fisk to take a bullet from Poindexter, who had escaped from custody. Fisk reveals to Vanessa his knowledge of her hiring Poindexter to kill Nelson, and sends Cashman to kill an hospitalized Murdock, who escapes. Fisk's plans to establish acity-state in Red Hook are discovered by Murdock and Page. Fisk kills Gallo after his attempt to undermine Fisk is exposed by Rivera. Fisk declaresmartial law, outlaws vigilantism, and imprisons Duquesne, Castle, and other dissidents in Red Hook.
Vincent D'Onofrio, who was cast as Wilson Fisk in June 2014,[3] stated that he hoped his portrayal of Fisk was a new way to look at the character, and that it would be the definitive portrayal of the character.[4] "Our Fisk, he's a child and he's a monster," D'Onofrio said. "Every move that he makes and everything that he does in our story comes from his foundation of morality inside himself".[5] Cole Jensen plays a young Wilson Fisk.[6] Writer Corey Latta notes that Fisk and Murdock both grow up fatherless, but allow that experience to pull them in very different directions.[2]
DeKnight detailed that "Fisk has very many different aspects so it's not all, 'I want to conquer the city and make a lot of money'. In our story, we tell the story of how he met his wife Vanessa and how they fell in love". He also said that "if you're looking for a juicy, multi-faceted crime drama, Wilson Fisk was the obvious choice to play the antagonist ... [he] really felt like the right yin to the yang for Matt, and for what we wanted to do this season".[7] Concerning Fisk not being called Kingpin during the first season, like he is in the comics, DeKnight explained that "I think there is a, dare I say, critical mass where things get a little bit silly. You know if in the last five minutes we went, 'Oh they called him Daredevil! Oh they called him Kingpin!' It's a little too much. Also there was no real natural way to get to Kingpin. It felt a little off. There is a point down the line to get there".[8] Discussing Fisk's fighting style, compared to Daredevil's, series stunt coordinator Philip J Silvera said that, "I feel like they're almost two sides to the same coin. They're both doing things for their city. And it's a tricky thing with their two characters. I think when you get the Fisk character to a certain point, it just becomes pure rage, and all thought process is out the window. ... The brutality is just relentless with him. When he gets into this mode, he just keeps going until he's done. And that's it. He will drive for you. That is the Kingpin, that is D'Onofrio. He's a very smooth, calculating individual, but when you bring the rage out in him, he's like a bulldozer".[9]
While Fisk typically appears wearing a white suit, in his appearance inHawkeye, he wore a white suit jacket over a bold red and whiteHawaiian shirt, an homage to the appearance of the character in a 2014Spider-Man graphic novel.[10]
Maslansky explained that "Wilson Fisk has a specific look. His choices reflect the man he is and the man he's become. As with Matt Murdock's costumes, I was influenced by the comics with the same stipulation that they feel authentic and modern. We dressed Fisk in current style, embracing a slim silhouette. It's classic and consistent. His clothing was custom-made by a highly skilled tailor, Michael Andrews who's well versed in modern design details". Significant props used for Fisk in the series are his father's cufflinks, on which Maslansky said, "[Fisk's father] would have bought them in the 1950s or '60s—a mid-century design. We searched for the perfect vintage cufflinks. We finally landed on a sterling silver pair with interesting negative space. We knew from reading ahead we'd need many duplicates. I redesigned them, adding more detail—a tiger's eye stone and a portion of it cast in gold. They retained a mid-century look, enhanced to become unique in the world".[11]
Fisk has appeared portrayed byVincent D'Onofrio in four television series of the MCU. He first appears inMarvel Television'sNetflix seriesDaredevil (2015–2018),[12][13][3][14] and returns inMarvel Studios'Disney+ seriesHawkeye (2021),Echo (2024),[15] andDaredevil: Born Again (2025–present).[16]
D'Onofrio's performance as Fisk received critical praise, being highlighted as one of the best-received aspects ofDaredevil andMarvel's Netflix television series as a whole. Alex Abad-Santos ofVox called him "the single best thing about [the series]' first installment".[17] Jeet Heer, writing forThe New Republic, described the MCU's take on the character as "Brought to life with a shy dignity and subdued menace",[18] while Matt Patches fromEsquire commented that the show "Takes time to nuance the character, unheard of for a villain in the MCU. Fisk is a romantic, an idealist, a fighter, and not terribly different than his costumed opponent.[19] Speaking on his performance in the final season of the series, Mark Hughes ofForbes wrote that the actor left him awestruck through his performance, stating that it was "A role I'd previously thought was nearly impossible to fill because I couldn't imagine any actor capturing the delicate balance between cunning villainy, secret vulnerabilities, and sheer larger-than-life presentation required to really get the character right. D'Onofrio not only proved me wrong, he actually managed to improve upon a character who already had decades of exceptional stories in the comics featuring many iconicarcs".[20]
| Year | Work | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Daredevil | EWwy Awards | Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Nominated | [21] |
| IGN Awards | Best TV Actor | Nominated | [22] | ||
| Best TV Villain | Nominated | [23] | |||
| 2016 | Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actor on Television | Nominated | [24] | |
| 2018 | IGN Awards | Best Dramatic TV Performance | Nominated | [25] | |
| 2022 | Hawkeye | Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Villain in a Series | Nominated | [26] |
| 2025 | Daredevil: Born Again | Astra TV Awards | Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Nominated | [27] |
| Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Villain in a Series, Limited Series or Made-for-TV Movie | Pending | [28] |
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| Daredevil: Born Again |
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