‘Daredevil’ Season 2 Star Stephen Rider Talks Blake Tower, Marvel Crossover Possibilities And More

“Marvel’s Daredevil” is adding plenty of new faces to Season 2, but they aren’t all killers. While the Punisher (Jon Bernthal) and Elektra (Elodie Yung) will be fighting evil and leaving a trail of bodies behind them, there will be someone without a mask trying to protect the city. District Attorney Blake Tower, played by Stephen Rider, will be a new character who is trying to save Hell’s Kitchen.

The world of “Daredevil” is filled with people working as vigilantes, but Rider emphasized to International Businesss Times that Tower stands by the law.

“Unlike many people who, you know just in every day life, who try to go outside of the law to change things,” Rider said, “I think he really understands that there’s something about the law that’s flawed, but also something that’s very perfect and really great too when it’s used correctly. So I think he really starts to uphold the law, and at the same time, he also understands that there’s something that’s necessary at times when the law doesn’t do it’s job, if that makes any sense.”

That doesn’t mean Tower is Daredevil’s (Charlie Cox) biggest cheerleader, though. The D.A. might share some believes with Matt, but he is still confused about the changing dynamics of the neighborhood. “The world that is Hell’s Kitchen is very different and it is changing,” Rider explained. “Because you have all these vigilantes, and you have all these thugs and you know, all these different types of people that are coming to the forefront, and I think he is just trying to figure out which side to be on. But he does know that what Daredevil stands for is something that he stands for too. I think he’s aligned with a lot of his principles.”

For Rider, who was mentored by Denzel Washington on films like “Safe House” and “The Great Debaters,” the role of Blake Tower was an exciting offer. Though he only read the comics after landing the part, he didn’t have to do much research on the world of the “Daredevil” TV show. He binge-watched the first season on Netflix before he even knew that he’d audition for it. Being a fan made his job a little easier.

“When the audition came up, I felt like I had a very strong sense of the world that they were trying to create in terms of even understanding the values,” Rider noted. “Because I feel like although there’s a fantastical aspect to it, it’s really grounded in, I believe, the world that we live in today. So it’s very easy to kind of start to, as a fan, just as an actor, as a fan, start to put yourself in the different characters’ shoes.”

Rider knows that this role could very well lead to parts in other shows. “Daredevil” is one of five shows that Marvel has planned with Netflix, and they’re all apart of the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Rider couldn’t say if he was involved with any other projects in the MCU, but he definitely wouldn’t turn down a crossover opportunity.

“I think we’re like a bunch of Marvel nerds in a sense. … I think everybody would excited,” he said. “It’s like winning the lottery in a sense. So in that respect I don’t know, but I hope. I really do hope.”

Luckily, the actor has a few other jobs to keep him busy in the meantime. He’ll soon go to Romania to film “Harley and the Davidsons” for Raw Television where he’ll play William Johnson, the first African-American Harley Davidson dealer. “The fact that he is the first to overcome obstacles, and for people to be able to see him and see him not just based on the color of his skin, but the content of his character, I think, is a pretty incredible thing.” The series is set to air later this year.

“Marvel’s Daredevil” Season 2 is on Netflix now. Watch the trailer below: