Hawkeye Episode 5's mind-blowing cameo just changed the MCU forever
The Marvel Cinematic Universe will never be the same.
Hawkeye Episode 5 was full of twists and turns, but it saved the biggest reveal for last. We seriously need to talk about this spoiler, so if you haven’t watched the episode stop reading now.
Warning! Major Hawkeye spoilers ahead
Still here? Great. Hopefully, that’s because you know that Vincent D’Onofrio is back as Kingpin! The main villain from Netflix’s Daredevil series officially (re)joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Hawkeye Episode 5, where he was revealed to be the “big guy” and the boss of Eleanore Bishop (aka, Kate’s mom), who it turns out was also the person that hired Yelena to murder Clint Barton.
Yeah, there’s a lot to unpack in just the last few minutes of Hawkeye Episode 5, “Ronin,” so let’s dive in.
Hawkeye Episode 5 ending explained
At the end of Hawkeye’s latest episode, Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) receives a text message from her new friend Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh). Turns out, Kate’s mom (Vera Farmiga) really is the villain of the show — we knew it! — but her boss is an even bigger surprise.
Yelena texts Kate.
Kingpin returns, but only in a grainy photo — for now.
It’s unclear exactly how these two connect to Maya/Echo (Alaqua Cox) and Hawkeye himself, though earlier in the episode Clint (Jeremy Renner) claims that Maya’s boss (we assume that means Kingpin) was the one who helped him take out Maya’s dad and the rest of his crime syndicate as Ronin. Also, Kingpin is generally a bad dude who likes to exert power over everyone else in New York. So it’s no surprise that as soon as Hawkeye showed up and started fighting crime, Kingpin would get involved.
Who is Kingpin in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
Kingpin in Daredevil.
Played by Vincent D’Onofrio in Netflix’s Daredevil series, Kingpin (real name Wilson Fisk) is a legendary crime boss in Marvel history. His main enemy is usually Spider-Man, but he proved to be a good antagonist for Matt Murdock as well. He’s also the adoptive father of Echo in the comics, which we assume is the case in the MCU.
Kingpin doesn’t have any actual superpowers, but he’s incredibly strong — his gargantuan body is virtually all muscle. In the comics, he also wears kevlar armor under his suit and carries a cane that shoots lasers.
Netflix’s show portrayed a more grounded version of Fisk without the high-tech weaponry. Despite that, he was still a formidable foe, serving as the main villain for multiple seasons. Inevitably, he lost to Daredevil, and when we last saw him, Wilson Fisk was being escorted to jail.
It’s unclear if Kingpin was Blipped by Thanos, though the MCU Wiki suggests he survived the Snap and used that time to rebuild his criminal empire. Either way, we’ll likely learn a whole lot more when he shows up in person in the Hawkeye finale.
How Kingpin changes the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Are the Defenders joining the MCU?
Wilson Fisk is likely just the beginning. Now that the Netflix Marvel shows are part of the MCU again, anyone from those stories could crossover. That includes heroes like Daredevil, Luke Cage, and Jessica Jones, along with villains like Bullseye and anti-heroes like Punisher. We’re just getting started.
Hawkeye is streaming now on Disney+.
