Marvel’s Echo on Disney Plus: release date, trailer, cast, plot, and more

Marvel Studios' Echo has landed on Disney Plus and Hulu

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• Out now on Disney Plus and Hulu- Trailers debuted in late 2023- Created by Marion Dayre- Directed by Sydney Freeland and Catriona McKenzie- Set afterHawkeye- Stars Alaqua Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio among others- Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock/Daredevil will cameo- First plot synopsis released- Other key storylines leaked- Confirms Netflix Marvel shows are canon in the MCU- Sets up the street level corner of the MCU

Echo, 2024’s firstMarvelTV series, has officially landed on Disney Plus and Hulu. Unlike the last two years, the comic book giant has come out swinging with a brand-new Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) just days after the new year – and it’ll hope the miniseries can set the stage for a calmer, more acclaimed year than the past 12 months have been.

The first thing you’ll want to do before streaming it Marvel’s nextDisney Plusshow, though, is read ourspoiler-light thoughts onEcho’s first three episodes. If you’re curious to learn more about theMarvel Phase 5show before you watch it, we’ve also rounded up everything you need to know about the Alaqua Cox-starring production. So, you’ll find more information on it its trailers, cast details, story synopsis, and more below.

Full spoilers followforHawkeye, which is where Maya Lopez/Echo made her live-action debut.Potential spoilersfor the character’s miniseries are also discussed.

Marvel Studios' Echo release date

Check out this brand-new poster for Marvel Studios' #Echo, a new Original series with all episodes streaming January 10 on @DisneyPlus & @Hulu.All episodes will be available on Hulu until April 9. pic.twitter.com/x2CaCQrBrZNovember 3, 2023

Echowas released onJanuary 9 in the US, and January 10 in the UK and Australia. It was initially due out last November but, just three weeks before its original launch,Echowas handed a new release date.

Marvel also confirmed the limited series would launch on Disney Plus andHulu(in the US), but it’ll only be available on the latter until April 9. Additionally, it’ll be the first MCU TV show to fall under the studio’s new ‘Spotlight’ banner, which is the home for Marvel projects that “focus on street-level stakes over larger MCU continuity” (perMarvel.com).

Lastly, it was confirmedEchowould get a Netflix-style launch, with all five episodes releasing simultaneously on launch day, so you can binge watch it in full now.

Marvel Studios' Echo trailer

A new 60-second stinger forEchowas released online ahead of the 2023 festive season. In it, we get a glimpse at one of the show’s one shot-esque fight sequences, which is eerily reminiscent ofNetflix’sDaredevilTV series (more on this later), other explosive and bloody moments, and a brief look at Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock/Daredevil battling Maya Lopez (i.e. the titular character). In short: color us excited.

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Missed the first teaser that confirmedEcho’s release date and Daredevil’s appearance, and showed off even more brutal R-rated action? Check it out below:

Marvel Studios' Echo cast

Major spoilers follow for Hawkeye.

Here’sEcho’s confirmed cast:

After making her MCU debut inHawkeye, Cox’s Lopez/Echo returns to front her own show. Speaking to TechRadar ahead ofEcho’s release, director Sydney Freeland revealedMaya’s comic book backstory had been altered in the MCU to be “more authentic"to her Native American background.

McClarnon, who played Echo’s father William Lopez inHawkeye, will show up but his appearances will be restricted to flashback sequences. InHawkeye, it’s revealed the Tracksuit Mafia’s former lynchpin was dead, with William believed to be killed by Clint Barton/Hawkeye (then masquerading as anti-hero Ronin) during the Blip, i.e. the time period betweenAvengers: Infinity WarandAvengers: Endgame.

Following his own MCU entrance inHawkeye, D’Onofrio’s Fisk will also return. Fisk adopted Maya after her father’s death and trained the deaf superhero to become an expert combatant for his extensive crime syndicate. However, when it was revealed Fisk ordered the fatal hit on William Lopez, Echo sought revenge on her adopter, shooting him in the face duringHawkeye’s finale. Fisk’s fate was unknown after that showdown, but now we know he survived. You can read more about that showdown in ourHawkeyeending explainedarticle.

Cox’s Murdock/Daredevil, who appeared in MCU projectsSpider-Man: No Way HomeandShe-Hulk, will add to his supporting/cameo roles tally here. The trailer confirms Daredevil and Echo will fight at some point, too.

There’s been plenty of debate about whether the MCU’s versions of Fisk and Murdock are the same ones we saw in Netflix’sDaredevilseries. Thanks to anew Fisk-centric TV spot on X/Twitterand aComic Book Centralchat with D’Onofrio, though, it’s all-but-confirmed they are.

As for the rest of the cast, they’re Maya’s blood relatives and/or figures from her childhood who she reunites with throughout her miniseries. You’ll have to wait for the show to launch to find out more, though.

Marvel Studios' Echo plot: synopsis and story speculation

Here’sEcho’s official story synopsis: “The origin story ofEchorevisits Maya Lopez, whose ruthless behavior in New York City catches up with her in her hometown [of Oklahoma]. She must face her past, reconnect with her Native American roots, and embrace the meaning of family and community if she ever hopes to move forward.”

According to industry insiderDanielRPK, audiences shouldn’t expect audiences to view Maya as a hero or anti-hero in the show. Indeed,Echois the first MCU project with a villain as the lead (Avengers: Infinity War’s Thanos notwithstanding), so expect some questionable decisions to be made on her part.

It sounds likeEchowill be a unique series when it arrives, too. In a chat withCollider, producer Stephen Broussard said it’s a “very different” type of story from what we’ve previously seen in the MCU, adding: “It feels very grounded and spiritual in ways that feel fresh for us”. Speaking to TechRadar, director Sydney Freeland was also pleased to hear fans hadlikenedEcho’s tonality and vibe to that of hit crime seriesBreaking Badand ultraviolent action-thriller film franchiseJohn Wick– comparisons that certainly add to Broussard’s comments.

In a separate talk withMarvel.com, Freeland also hinted at the show’s spiritualistic side, saying: “There’s this undercurrent of this fantastical side, which is that we are going to be visiting Maya’s matrilineal ancestors, going quite a bit backward in time.”

The first look at Maya Lopez’s costume in ‘ECHO’ pic.twitter.com/ekHvpe8CrmNovember 4, 2023

That “spiritual” aspect has a lot to do with Echo’s Native American heritage. In the comics, Maya Lopez is a descendant of the Cheyenne Nation, an Indigenous tribe with a strong belief that all living things are spiritually connected. In her MCU counterpart, though, Maya is a member of Oklahoma’s Choctaw Nation. To that end, the series will have a Choctaw language audio dub option available, perEntertainment Weekly(EW).

We’ll also get some insight into Maya’s upbringing and how she joined Fisk’s criminal empire. MCU leakerCanWeGetSomeToast(CWGST) claims we’ll see a flashback to William Lopez’s death in 2019, how Maya’s impacted by that loss, her first interaction with Fisk, and her training to become the Tracksuit Mafia’s new leader. Freeland confirmed (via Marvel.com) that Maya and Fisk’s dynamic is “one of the core relationships in the entire series”, and that the miniseries will reveal Fisk’s real superpower is “his intellect and… ability to psychologically manipulate people.”

Potentially big Echo spoilers follow.

Here he is in slowmo. 🤌🏼🤌🏼🤌🏼🤌🏼 pic.twitter.com/Lb5DQVy5dSNovember 3, 2023

Given Daredevil’s supporting role in the show, many fans are curious to learn when and where Echo and The Man Without Fear will cross paths. We’re unsure right now but, perCWGST, the duo will only “communicate with their fists”, meaning we’ll see a potentially stellar fight sequence or two between them.

One story beat that seems ripe for exploration is the Blip, aka the five-year period betweenAvengers: Infinity WarandAvengers: Endgame. Marvel hasn’t extensively examined this time period in any movie or TV show, choosing instead to drip-feed pieces of information throughout the MCU. However, MCU insiderCharles Murphyhas suggested “parts ofEchowill take place during the Blip”, so we might see how Kingpin’s criminal empire gained a foothold during this time and Maya’s role in said expansion.

Marvel fans who’ve seenHawkeyeand/or read Echo-starring comics will know her main superpower is photographic reflexes. Essentially, she’s able to mimic the abilities/movements of other people, just likeBlack Widowvillain Taskmaster.

Presumably, then, we’ll see Echo hone her mimic-based powers in her series, right? Not quite. In fact, Maya will get a sizable superhero-style upgrade – and it’s all thanks to her ancestors.

According to CWGST,Echowill see Maya acquire new abilities through Native American tattoos. The first one, which manifests in her hands,will grant her superhuman strength. The next onewill give her a sharpshooting abilityand “manifest the same gun as the ancestor empowering her”. Lastly,she’ll get enhanced speed and durability, which will help her “determine the trajectory of a person’s/item’s movement”.

It seems these rumors have some truth to them, based on a report fromThe Direct. During Marvel’s section of Disney’s2022 edition of D23 Expo, the first footage ofEchowas shown exclusively to attendees and teased Maya’s glowing hands. Incidentally, in the comics, the character is known for the white handprint Maya marks her face with whenever she uses her superhero alias, so it seems Marvel is using this iconic look as a basis for the tattoos Echo’s MCU iteration will get.

Speaking at anEchopress event (perVariety), Freeland teased Maya will get a superpower upgrade, saying: “Her power in the comic books is that she can copy anything, any movement, any whatever. It’s kind of lame. I will say, that is not her power. I’ll just kind of leave it at that”. It sounds like the rumors are true, then.

How will Echo impact the MCU?

Potentially big spoilers follow for the MCU’s future.

Echois the second series that explores the MCU' new street-level corner.Hawkeyewas the first and, based on events in that series and whatever happens inEcho, the pair might set up multiple Disney Plus series – and potentially one movie – where D’Onofrio’s Fisk could be the overarching villain. According to executive producer Brad Winderbaum (perScreenRant), Fisk is being set up as the MCU’s street level version of Thanos (sans Infinity Stones, obviously).

According toCWGST, Fisk will run for New York Mayor post-Echoand win that election. Of course, installing the boss of a criminal empire as mayor won’t be good news for New York’s superhero contingent, with Mayor Fisk likely to install them as enemies of the state.

So, who could be affected by the potential clampdown on so-called vigilantes? For starters, Daredevil. We know he’ll square off with Kingpin inDaredevil: Born Again, so expect the Mayor Fisk storyline to bleed over into the character’s own Disney Plus show.

Echo is also expected to cameo inBorn Again(per D’Onofrio, as reported by theDaredevil Updates Twitter account), but those plans may have changed.Daredevil: Born Againwas reportedly in serious troubleas Marvel reworked the entire series after it failed to live up to the studio’s lofty expectations. However, with anew head writer and directors in place– and claims they’ll retain parts of the show’s original blueprint and already shot scenes – May might still show up.

On the movie side,Spider-Man 4, which is reportedly in the early developmental stages, could be affected by Fisk’s mayoral rise. Kingpin is one ofSpider-Man’s most notable arch-nemeses, so seeing them go toe-to-toe on the big screen would surely get bums on seats. Following the events ofNo Way Home, it seems Tom Holland’s webslinger will become the friendly neighborhood version of Spidey we’ve been waiting for. And, with the wallcrawler’s identity now a closely guarded secret after what transpired inNo Way Home, he could be in Fisk’s sights soon enough. Spider-Man and Daredevil big-screen team-up against Kingpin, anyone?

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As TechRadar’s senior entertainment reporter, Tom covers all of the latest movies, TV shows, and streaming service news that you need to know about. You’ll regularly find him writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and many other topics of interest.

An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Tom also writes reviews, analytical articles, opinion pieces, and interview-led features on the biggest franchises, actors, directors and other industry leaders. You may see his quotes pop up in the odd official Marvel Studios video, too, such as thisMoon Knight TV spot.

Away from work, Tom can be found checking out the latest video games, immersing himself in his favorite sporting pastime of football, reading the many unread books on his shelf, staying fit at the gym, and petting every dog he comes across.

Got a scoop, interesting story, or an intriguing angle on the latest news in entertainment? Feel free to drop him a line.

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