In the past 15 years, we’ve seen almost every major Marvel superhero brought to life either in film or television. But naturally some have been more successfully adapted than others, which has resulted in a few glaring absences from the modern cinematic canon. One character who has felt somewhat absent, despite the fact that she’s existed on the fringes of modern Marvel content for years, is Elektra.
Known as a sort of sidekick and occasional love interest of Matt Murdock (the blind lawyer in the Daredevil suit), Elektra actually appeared in the 2003 Daredevil film, and was played by Jennifer Garner. If you don’t remember, don’t feel too bad””it was a forgettable and underwhelming film, though somehow or other it inspired a spinoff sequel in the form of 2005’s Elektra (also starring Garner). That should have been pretty promising for the character’s future in modern cinema, but it turned out to be something of a disaster.
The film was very poorly received, with this review going so far as to say “the problem is Elektra is not among the most compelling of characters.” That’s pretty damning for a titular superhero. It also bears mention that both Daredevil and Elektra were 20th Century Fox films rather than Marvel Studios projects, which at least partially explains the disappearance of the characters for a decade while the Marvel Cinematic Universe geared up.
In the decade since Elektra, the character has been relegated to comics and video games, without so much as a hint of a cinematic revival until the past year or so. In comics, the character has remained relatively active, with this list displaying multiple titles from throughout the 2000’s and 2010’s in which she has either starred or featured. Most notably, the Elektra Vol. 3 series has been successful of late during its publishing between 2014-15.
Elsewhere, Elektra’s most consistent presence has been through an online arcade game that this site describes as one of the most stunning slots in the Marvel slot machine series (which actually includes a lot of games on various sites). Designed by Playtech, the game focuses largely on Elektra’s unconventional array of weaponry, with different weapons showcasing fun animations as they come up on the slot wheel. Meanwhile for those looking for more actionable gaming appearances by Elektra, numerous Marvel games featuring full collections of heroes do feature the character. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes and Marvel Heroes 2015 both include Elektra in some capacity or other, and she’s playable in a number of mobile games.
But as stated, all of these appearances since 2005 exist on the fringes of modern superhero fans’ attention. The devoted fans will still read the comics, and many of us may come across some of the games. But these days any character without fresh TV or film content feels as if he or she has been left behind. So it was with Elektra… until the announcement that she would indeed be appearing in the second season of Netflix’s Daredevil, due out this March.
The character will be played by Elodie Yung this time around. She’s a French actress who appeared in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, but is probably most recognizable as Jinx from G.I. Joe: Retaliation. It’s believed after a few hints from the creative team behind Daredevil that Yung’s Elektra will be presented as she often has been, as a former girlfriend and current romantic interest of Matt Murdock. But judging by one of our first early images of the character (which you can see here), she’ll also be suiting up for some action.
Given the success and popularity of season one of Daredevil, this should mark a pretty major revival for the Elektra character. As of now, she’s not slated for her own standalone series. With Marvel and Netflix planning at least three more series connecting Daredevil and other characters – Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Defenders not to mention possible subsequent seasons of Daredevil and Jessica Jones – we might see a great deal of Elodie Yung.
Let’s just hope it’s all more effective than the 2005 film was.
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