Filming has begun on Season 2 of the popular Netflix original series Daredevil, and now its show-runners at Marvel have announced that one of the most significant characters in the mythology, Elektra, has been cast.
Genre actress Elodie Yung will wield the sais to become one of Marvel comics’ most interesting female characters, Elektra Natchios, who was last seen in live-action with Jennifer Garner’s memorable take on the character in 2003’s Daredevil and the less-than-successful Eletkra spinoff in 2005.
The role is a perfect fit for Yung, a very talented actress who can certainly handle the physical demands of the role. Two years ago, she was one of the top three finalists for much-coveted role of Wonder Woman for Warner Brothers, which eventually went to Israeli actress Gal Gadot.
More comparable to Elektra was perhaps her contribution to the blockbuster franchise G.I. Joe. Yung had a somewhat prominent role in G.I. Joe Retaliation as Jynx, the ninja prodigy who trained under the Blind Master and who prefers to fight with her eyes covered. The character was first introduced as the red-garbed ninja recruit in the 1986 animated film, G.I. Joe The Movie in 1986, and Young’s interpretation of the character was spot-on.Though many of Jynx’s best character-building scenes were saved for the extended cut of the film, including her first test ninja test against Ray Park’s Snake-Eyes in the Blind Master’s exotic dojo (wherein viewers got a glimpse of her in a red ninja outfit which happened to match up perfectly to Elektra’s notable look in the Daredevil comic books), she proved to be formidable in a couple of key action scenes during the film. Among them was her role in the “Silent Interlude” sequence, wherein she and Snake-Eyes must contend with an army of ninjas while ascending to a hidden mountain fortress in order to acquire the Cobra ninja Storm Shadow. The sequence was memorable and appropriately over-the-top: this was G.I. Joe we’re talking about.
Yung’s other film credits include District 13: Ultimatum as well as the American version of the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and will appear as the goddess Hathor in the upcoming film Gods of Egypt.
After a much-beloved first season of Daredevil, which was edgier than most other comic book properties and featured stand-out fight scenes, a consistently engrossing story, and a great turn by Vincent D’onofrio as the villain Kingpin, perhaps no other upcoming season is as anticipated as Season 2 of Daredevil. That already-fervent level of excitement had been turned up a few notches when Marvel announced that Frank Castle himself – The Punisher – would appear on the show and, as played by John Benthal, would be in conflict with Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock. With the inclusion of Elektra, the core elements of the Daredevil story will play itself onscreen; there’s even unconfirmed reports that Bulls-Eye would also turn up during the season.
Such speculation would not be off-base at all, as Bull-Eye was one of the Daredevil’s greatest adversaries. He famously killed Electra in the comic book using her own sai, a moment which was more-or-less recreated in a scene from the 2003 film.
That film also saw the infamous Daredevil- Elektra scuffle at a playground; it’s highly doubtful the show-runners of the Daredevil series will do anything to bring back memories of that debacle.
Daredevil Season 2 will hit Netflix (and will subsequently be binged-watched by the fans) in 2016.
