Pedro Pascal Reveals He Nearly Joined One of the MCU’s Most Popular TV Shows

Nivedita Dubey
June 20, 2024

Key Points:

Pedro Pascal revealed he auditioned for a supporting lawyer role in the Daredevil TV show before landing Narcos
Pascal was set to test for the Daredevil part when the opportunity to lead Narcos came along instead
With Pascal rumored for the Fantastic Four, he nearly joined the MCU years earlier with Daredevil

During a recent career retrospective panel, Pedro Pascal opened up about how close he came to joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe years ago. The acclaimed actor, heavily rumored to be playing Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic in the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, revealed he had auditioned for a role in Netflix’s Daredevil TV series prior to booking his breakout part in Narcos.

Why Pedro Pascal Turned Down Daredevil for Narcos Lead?

According to Pascal’s comments, he was initially passed over for his eventual role as DEA agent Javier Peña in Narcos. But that opportunity reopened right as he was preparing to test for an unnamed supporting lawyer character in Daredevil.

“I was going to test for that role, and so, to intercept the test, they ended up offering me the Narcos [role],” Pascal explained. “It was like Netflix against Netflix.”

The chance to lead a prestigious Netflix series like Narcos was seemingly too good to pass up for Pascal at that stage of his career. So his potential stint in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was put on hold.

Could Pedro Pascal Still Join the MCU as Mr. Fantastic?

Pedro Pascal - The Last of Us — Pedro Pascal – The Last of Us

Of course, Pascal’s star has skyrocketed in the years since his lauded performance in Narcos. He’s become a household name thanks to iconic roles like The Mandalorian’s Din Djarin and Joel in HBO’s The Last of Us adaptation.

There are widespread reports that Pascal is in line to join the MCU after all as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s new Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie from Marvel Studios. However, his casting remains unconfirmed as of now.

Whether or not Pascal does indeed land the coveted superhero part, his career trajectory makes it clear foregoing that the early Daredevil role was the right call. Narcos launched him to much bigger and better opportunities.

Source: SAG-AFTRA