Echo (TV series)

Echo
Genre	Action Crime drama Superhero
Created by	Marion Dayre
Based on	Echo by David Mack Joe Quesada
Starring	Alaqua Cox Chaske Spencer Tantoo Cardinal Devery Jacobs Cody Lightning Graham Greene Zahn McClarnon Vincent D'Onofrio Charlie Cox
Composer	Mato Wayuhi
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Executive producers	Kevin Feige Louis D'Esposito Victoria Alonso Brad Winderbaum Stephen Broussard Richie Palmer Marion Dayre Jason Gavin
Production location	Atlanta metropolitan area
Cinematography	Kira Kelly
Editor	Joel Pashby
Production companies	Marvel Studios 20th Television
Release
Original network	Disney+
Related
Hawkeye Daredevil: Born Again Marvel Cinematic Universe television series

Echo is an upcoming American television series created by Marion Dayre for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. It is intended to be the tenth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise, and is a spin-off from the series Hawkeye (2021). It sees Maya Lopez return to her hometown where she must come to terms with her past, reconnect with her Native American roots, and embrace her family and community. Dayre serves as head writer for the series with Sydney Freeland leading the directing team. The series is also produced by 20th Television.

Alaqua Cox reprises her role as Maya Lopez / Echo from Hawkeye, with Chaske Spencer, Tantoo Cardinal, Devery Jacobs, Cody Lightning, Graham Greene, Zahn McClarnon, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Charlie Cox also starring. Development of the spin-off began by March 2021, with Etan and Emily Cohen attached as head writers, and Alaqua Cox confirmed to be returning. The series was formally announced in November 2021, when Dayre was revealed to be serving as head writer, with Freeland set to direct by March 2022. Filming occurred from late April to late August 2022, taking place in the Atlanta metropolitan area including Atlanta, Peachtree City, Social Circle, and Grantville, Georgia. In May, Marvel revealed further cast members and that Catriona McKenzie would also direct for the series.

Echo will be released in its entirety on Disney+ on November 29, 2023 as part of Phase Five of the MCU.

Premise

Following the events of Hawkeye (2021) in New York City, Maya Lopez returns to her hometown in Oklahoma, where she must come to terms with her past, reconnect with her Native American roots, and embrace her family and community. ^{[1] [2]}

Cast and characters

• Alaqua Cox as Maya Lopez / Echo: A deaf Native American and the former commander of the Tracksuit Mafia who can perfectly copy another person's movements. ^{[3] [4]}
• Zahn McClarnon as William Lopez: Maya's deceased father and a former commander of the Tracksuit Mafia. ^[5]
• Vincent D'Onofrio as Wilson Fisk / Kingpin:
  A crime lord in New York who is Lopez's adoptive uncle and the man responsible for her father's death. ^[6] After he was shot by Lopez during the events of Hawkeye (2021), Fisk begins to wear an eyepatch on one eye; in the comics, he was blinded in both eyes. ^[7]
• Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock / Daredevil: A blind lawyer from Hell's Kitchen, New York who leads a double life as a masked vigilante, and is searching for a former ally. ^[6]

Additionally, Chaske Spencer, Tantoo Cardinal, Devery Jacobs, Cody Lightning, and Graham Greene have been cast in undisclosed starring roles. ^[1]

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date  [8]
1	TBA	Sydney Freeland [9]	TBA	November 29, 2023 (2023-11-29)

Sydney Freeland directed other episodes of the series, ^[1] with Catriona McKenzie also directing episodes. ^[1]

Production

Development

In December 2020, Alaqua Cox was announced as having been cast as the Marvel Comics character Maya Lopez / Echo in Marvel Studios' Disney+ series Hawkeye (2021). ^[10] By March 2021, Marvel Studios was in early development on a spin-off from Hawkeye centered on Cox's Lopez for Disney+, with Etan Cohen and Emily Cohen set to write and executive produce. ^[4] During the Disney+ Day event in November 2021, the series was officially announced as Echo, ^[3] and Marion Dayre was serving as head writer by then instead of the Cohens. ^[11] Bert & Bertie, who directed the Hawkeye episode "Echoes" in which Lopez is introduced, did not believe they would be involved with the spin-off series and felt it would be appropriate for someone in the Native American community to further tell the character's story. ^[12] In March 2022, Sydney Freeland shared a casting call on her Instagram page, indicating her involvement in the series as a director. ^[13] Marvel Studios confirmed Freeland as a director in May, while also announcing that Catriona McKenzie would direct episodes of the series. ^[1] Freeland directs the first episode and others. ^{[9] [1]} Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Stephen Broussard, and Richie Palmer serve as executive producers along with Dayre and Jason Gavin, while Freeland serves as a co-executive producer. ^[1] 20th Television also produces the series. ^{[14] [ better source needed ]}

Writing

A writers' room for the series had been formed by the time development of the project was revealed in March 2021. ^[4] In addition to Dayre, writers for the series include Shoshannah Stern, Josh Feldman, Rebecca Roanhorse, Bobby Wilson, Steven Paul Judd, Jason Gavin, Ken Kristensen, Dara Resnik, Jessica Mecklenburg, Kaitlyn Jeffers, Paloma Lamb, ^[15] and Ellen Morton. ^[16] At least two episodes had been written by mid-February 2022, while writing for the other episodes was still continuing. Location manager Ryan Schaetzle said the story would focus on a small town. ^[17] Marvel said the series would explore the consequences of Echo's actions in Hawkeye and reveal her origin story. ^[1] Matt Murdock / Daredevil's inclusion in the series sees him searching for a former ally, which has been reported to be Jessica Jones. ^[6]

Casting

Alaqua Cox was expected to reprise her role in the series with the reveal of its development in March 2021, ^[4] which was confirmed with the series' official announcement in November 2021 for Disney+ Day. ^[3] By August 2021, casting for the series was underway, with Marvel Studios looking to cast deaf Native American or Latinx women. ^[18] In April 2022, Vincent D'Onofrio and Charlie Cox were revealed to be involved with the series, reprising their roles as Wilson Fisk / Kingpin and Matt Murdock / Daredevil from prior MCU media. ^{[19] [20]} By the end of the month, Devery Jacobs was cast in an undisclosed role, reported to be a lead of the series named Julie, which Deadline Hollywood described as "resilient and strong willed". ^[21] In May 2022, Marvel confirmed Jacobs's casting and announced that Chaske Spencer, Tantoo Cardinal, Cody Lightning, and Graham Greene would also star in the series, ^[1] with Zahn McClarnon reprising his role as Echo's father William Lopez from Hawkeye. ^{[5] [1]} Charlie Cox and D'Onofrio were confirmed to be returning for the series in July 2022. ^[6]

By April 2022, Marvel Studios was looking to cast background performers and extras, particularly Native Americans, for two waves of filming. The first group of around 30 people would portray a "core group" of townspeople, ^[22] while background casting for pow wow dancers and singers was also underway. ^[23]

Design

Stacy Caballero serves as the costume designer for the series, ^[19] after previously working on the MCU films Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) as an assistant costume designer. ^[24]

Filming

Principal photography began on April 21, 2022, ^[25] throughout the Atlanta metropolitan area, in Atlanta, ^[26] and was set to occur along the Great Walton Railroad in Social Circle, Georgia that month, ^[27] with Freeland and McKenzie directing. ^[1] Kira Kelly served as the cinematographer for Freeland. ^[9] The series was filmed using the working titles Grasshopper and Whole Branzino. ^{[26] [28]} Filming was also set to occur in and around Peachtree City, Georgia from late April to late August 2022. ^[29] Filming was previously expected to begin in February 2022, ^[18] as well as in early April. ^[26] Filming establishing shots for two episodes took place in Grantville, Georgia from May 16 to 20, on various streets in the town, the Grantville water tower, and Bonnie Castle. ^[17] Filming outside Atlanta occurred with the first group of extras around June 1, with the second group for three weeks in July, ^[22] and with the dancers and singers extras for around two-to-three weeks in July. ^[23] Filming occurred over 92 days, ^[30] and wrapped on August 26, 2022. ^[31]

Post-production

In May 2023, Jeff Sneider of Above the Line reported that the series was originally filmed as eight episodes and, after various production issues, had been found by Feige to be "unreleasable". Discussions were then had about possibly editing what had been filmed into four or six episodes during post-production, before it was ultimately decided to reshoot much of the series. ^[32] Joel Pashby serves as editor on the series. ^[33]

Music

By February 2023, Mato Wayuhi was working on the score for the series. ^[34]

Marketing

Alaqua Cox, D'Onofrio, Jacobs, Greene, Cody Lightning, and Chaske Spencer presented the first footage of the series at the 2022 D23 Expo. ^[35] Aidan Kelley from Collider said the footage perfectly set up the series' tone and made it clear that Lopez's Native American heritage would be prominent throughout. Kelley also said the footage showed Lopez being "a total badass with an incredible performance from Alaqua Cox who just exudes charisma without uttering a single word". ^[36]

Release

Echo will be released in its entirety on Disney+ on November 29, 2023. ^[8] It was originally scheduled to be released in mid-2023, ^[37] before Dayre stated in December 2022 that the series would likely be released around a year from then, indicating a late 2023 premiere. ^[38] Echo will be the first Marvel Studios series to release all of its episodes at once, as the studio's previous series were released weekly. ^[39] It is expected to be part of Phase Five of the MCU. ^[37]

Future

In November 2022, D'Onofrio stated that Echo would lead into the events of the Disney+ series Daredevil: Born Again , with D'Onofrio and Charlie Cox reprising their respective roles as Wilson Fisk / Kingpin and Matt Murdock / Daredevil. ^[40]

References

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2. Barnhardt, Adam (September 15, 2022). "Echo Star Alaqua Cox Reveals How Her Attack on Kingpin Sets Up New Disney+ Series". ComicBook.com . Archived from the original on September 15, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
3. Hipes, Patrick (November 12, 2021). "Disney+ Day: All The Streamer's Film & TV News From Premiere Dates To Series Orders". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on November 12, 2021. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
4. Moreau, Jordan (March 22, 2021). "'Hawkeye' Spinoff Series About Echo in Early Development for Disney Plus (Exclusive)". Variety . Archived from the original on March 22, 2021. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
5. White, James (May 17, 2022). "First Look At Marvel Disney+ Hawkeye Spin-Off Series Echo". Empire . Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
6. Couch, Aaron; Kit, Borys (July 7, 2022). "Charlie Cox, Vincent D'Onofrio Returning for Marvel Series 'Echo'". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on July 7, 2022. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
7. Leite, Marcelo de Souza Silverio (September 10, 2022). "Kingpin's MCU Fate Is A Sad & Significant Marvel Comics Change". Screen Rant . Archived from the original on September 11, 2022. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
8. Vary, Adam B.; Maas, Jennifer (May 16, 2023). "Marvel Sets Premiere Dates for 'Loki' Season 2, 'Echo' on Disney+". Variety . Archived from the original on May 16, 2023. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
9. Barnhardt, Adam (May 24, 2022). "Echo Writer Reveals New Logo as Marvel Studios Begins Filming". ComicBook.com . Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved May 25, 2022.
10. Otterson, Joe (December 3, 2020). "'Hawkeye' Series at Disney Plus Adds Six to Cast, Including Vera Farmiga and Tony Dalton (Exclusive)". Variety . Archived from the original on December 3, 2020. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
11. Davids, Brian (November 19, 2021). "'Hawkeye' EP Trinh Tran on Casting Hailee Steinfeld and the Influence of 'Better Call Saul'". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 20, 2021.
12. Davids, Brian (December 13, 2021). "'Hawkeye' Directors Bert and Bertie on Episode 4's Reveal and 'Echo' Series Involvement". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
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15. Dayre, Marion [@mariondayre] (November 13, 2021). "I can finally officially tell you what we've been working on for months! Head Writer, (Marvel's equivalent to Showrunner) babay! You're not gonna wanna miss this!! @shoshannah7 @itsjoshfeldman @rebeccaroanhorse @bobbydues @stevenpauljudd @jason.gavin @kenkristensen @dararesnik @jessmeck @_kaitlynjeffers @lamb_chopzz" . Retrieved January 12, 2022– via Instagram. – via Miller, Nathan (November 14, 2021). "Marion Dayre Reveals 'Echo' Writers' Room". Murphy's Multiverse. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
16. "Ellen Morton – WGA Directory". Writers Guild of America West . Archived from the original on January 1, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
17. Dean, Jeffrey-Cullen (March 4, 2022). "Marvel Studios production to film in Grantville". The Newnan Times-Herald . Archived from the original on March 4, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
18. Flook, Ryan (August 14, 2021). "Hawkeye: Alaqua Cox Shares Casting Search Info for Echo Spinoff Series". Bleeding Cool . Archived from the original on August 14, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2021.
19. Arvedon, Jon (April 5, 2022). "Marvel Leak Spoils Daredevil and Kingpin's Next MCU Appearance". Comic Book Resources . Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
20. Anthony, Lund (April 5, 2022). "Daredevil and Kingpin Seemingly Confirmed to Appear Together in New Disney+ Series". MovieWeb . Archived from the original on April 6, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
21. Andreeva, Nellie (April 28, 2022). "'Reservation Dogs' Devery Jacobs Joins 'Echo' Marvel Series For Disney+". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on April 28, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
22. Steves, Ashley (April 5, 2022). "Now Casting: The Upcoming Marvel and Disney+ Series 'Echo' Needs Talent + 3 More Gigs". Backstage.com . Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022. – via "Echo Extras". echoextras.com. Marvel Studios. Archived from the original on March 28, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
23. "Echo Extras". echopowwowextras.com. Marvel Studios. Archived from the original on April 27, 2022. Retrieved April 27, 2022.
24. Sharma, Abhishek (April 6, 2022). "Black Panther 2: Is Daniel Kaluuya Returning for the Sequel?". MovieWeb . Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
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26. Ho, Rodney (March 17, 2022). "What's filming in Georgia in March 2022?". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Archived from the original on March 18, 2022. Retrieved March 29, 2022.
27. Etheridge, Denise (March 8, 2022). "Film production underway in Walton County" . The Walton Tribune . Archived from the original on March 11, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
28. "Production Weekly – Issue 1254 – Thursday, July 8, 2021 / 154 Listings – 34 Pages". Production Weekly. July 7, 2021. Archived from the original on July 8, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
29. Jirak, Jamie (April 7, 2022). "Marvel's Echo Filming Dates Revealed in New Production Listing". ComicBook.com . Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
30. Freeland, Sydney [@sydneyfreeland] (August 26, 2022). "Echo Day 92. Nobody else I'd rather be in the trenches with than my AD Doug Plasse and my Cinematographer @thekiragram. Sad that this production is coming to an end but excited for everyone to see what we've been working on #phase5" . Retrieved August 27, 2022– via Instagram.
31. Anderson, Jenna (August 26, 2022). "Marvel's Echo Star Reveals Filming Has Wrapped". ComicBook.com . Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
32. Legacy, Spencer (May 21, 2023). "Report: Marvel's Kevin Feige Considered Echo 'Unreleasable' Prior to Reshoots". ComingSoon.net . Archived from the original on May 22, 2023. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
33. "Joel Pashby Resume". Eastern Talent Agency. April 5, 2023. Archived from the original on April 5, 2023. Retrieved April 5, 2023.
34. Vlessing, Etan (February 14, 2023). "'Reservation Dogs' Composer Mato Wayuhi Signs With CAA (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on February 15, 2023. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
35. "D23 Expo 2022: Marvel Studios' 'Echo'". Marvel.com . September 10, 2022. Archived from the original on September 11, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
36. Kelley, Aidan (September 10, 2022). "New 'Echo' Footage Showcases the Return of Alaqua Cox's Groundbreaking Hero". Collider . Archived from the original on September 11, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
37. Vary, Adam B. (July 23, 2022). "Marvel Studios' Phases 5 and 6: Everything We Learned at Comic-Con About the Multiverse Saga". Variety . Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
38. Barnhardt, Adam (December 13, 2022). "Echo Writer Confirms Major Delay for Marvel's Disney+ Series". ComicBook.com . Archived from the original on December 14, 2022. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
39. White, Peter (May 16, 2023). "Marvel To Drop All Episodes Of 'Hawkeye' Spin-Off 'Echo' At Once On Disney+ In Streaming Strategy Shift". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on May 16, 2023. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
40. Parks, Adam (November 23, 2022). "Marvel's Echo Leads Right Into Daredevil: Born Again, Reveals Vincent D'Onofrio". Comic Book Resources . Archived from the original on November 23, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.

External links

• Official website
• Echo at IMDb