Exclusive Interview: Genneya Walton on BB’s Future and the Emotional Fallout of the ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Season 2 Finale

Amid the chaos, corruption, and shifting power dynamics of Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, Genneya Walton delivers one of the season’s most resonant performances. There’s an undeniable lived-in quality to Genneya’s work, where every movement, line delivery, and emotional turn feels instinctive rather than performed. Genneya doesn’t simply step into BB, she fully disappears into the role, bringing a grounded depth that reveals the humanity beneath the character’s ambition, grief, and carefully guarded exterior.

As Mayor Wilson Fisk tightens his grip on New York City and wages war against the Hell’s Kitchen vigilante known as Daredevil, Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 pushes every character to their limits. Caught in the middle of that escalating tension is BB, whose pursuit of truth and justice becomes increasingly personal as loss, resistance, and responsibility begin to collide.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to catch up with Genneya Walton to discuss BB’s journey throughout the season, the heartbreaking finale and its aftermath, and what may lie ahead as BB enters a transformative new chapter.

PC: BB is somebody who’s always thinking a few steps ahead and is driven by such a strong sense of purpose. As an audience member, you feel the intention behind every decision she makes. What was your process like bringing this character to life? How did it evolve from Season 1 heading into Season 2, where the stakes are so much higher and the emotional core of the character, and your performance, feels so lived-in and resonant?
Genneya: It started once I found out that I got the job. She has big shoes to fill, taking Ben Urich’s place. It was so heartbreaking in the original show when he passed away. The performance was beautiful, and the character was so well-written and such an important part of the whole Daredevil puzzle.

I observed that and tried to understand how she would fit into that, being a woman, younger, and having a more modern approach to journalism in this day and age. I tried to understand where she was coming from because sometimes, as an outsider looking in, or even me reading it, I could have been judgmental and been like, “Oh my gosh, girl, your morals… you’re doing this for a good cause, but you’re hurting this other person.” It was about figuring out where those lines were for her.

Having such a great arc this season, we get to see what she’s willing to do to not only get justice for her uncle, but also for all the other people who have been wronged by Fisk and his administration. The reason she’s doing what she’s doing isn’t purely selfish because of what happened to her uncle. Ben had such a care for humanity and for the people of New York that he was trying to protect, and she carries that with her. That’s what drives her, or at least what inspired me while playing her.

Because it’s very easy with her and Daniel’s dynamic to be like, “She manipulated him,” but there’s a much bigger picture that I admire because she’s doing everything in her power to accomplish this larger goal.

In Season 1 specifically, she talks about how Ben always said it’s important to speak truth to power, and she questions Daniel on that. She holds onto that as she moves through life. Then later on, we see her feelings for this person start to waver and change some of her plans a bit. I loved how they wrote her arc this season. That was so helpful outside of what I was able to build on my own.

PC: Beautifully said. I feel like all the decisions she makes are so uniquely human. There’s always been this understanding between BB and Daniel where they both seem to know what this relationship is, or what it was supposed to be. But over the course of Season 2, we see that shift in such subtle and nuanced ways. How did you approach capturing that evolution both individually and then with Michael Gandolfini? Was there a definitive moment where you felt that shift?
Genneya: It was a huge collaborative experience with Michael. When we saw the material they had us working with in Season 2, it was a huge deal to us. It felt like a big responsibility that we didn’t take lightly. We had a bunch of lunches and dinners where we talked through the choices our characters were making separately and what those choices meant to one another.

As far as the moment, I thought the interaction she had with Karen was so funny when Karen’s like, “Do you like him?” and she’s like, “No, it’s not like that, but he grows on you.” When we did that scene, I was like, “Guys, she’s lying.” [laughs] She cares for him. But that was so fun to play, the whole “does she, doesn’t she?” dynamic. You weren’t fully sure until later on. I think that relationship paced itself in such a great way.

We had a sense of where things were ultimately going to land, which helped us figure out how we wanted to play those moments so it felt earned and not like it was coming out of nowhere. But Staten Island was such a big moment for BB in terms of realizing how she actually feels about him and what she’s willing to sacrifice.

PC: That’s such a great insight. The pacing makes that journey between the two of them so rewarding for audience members. There’s this real unpredictability to the series that makes it exciting to watch, but at times, also heartbreaking. How does Daniel’s fate impact BB moving forward? And what was your reaction when you found out about that scene?
Genneya: My goodness. It was so upsetting and heartbreaking. At the end of Season 1, we’re rooting for them. We needed them together. For all of that to happen… I actually didn’t get to read it because that wasn’t the original plan. We filmed him surviving. I didn’t know until after we were done filming, when I was doing ADR and all the voice recordings afterward. I got the news and I was crying in the booth because I was like, “What are you talking about?” I thought they were going to get some sort of happy ending.

But it really does raise the stakes for her. It’s going to be very interesting to see how that affects her because she’s already experienced so much loss and pain. She had finally let her guard down with him, just for that to be ripped away. It’ll be interesting to see how that changes her moving forward and whether she goes a little more off her rocker because she’s always been so sure of herself and the choices she makes.

PC: Season 2 has really leaned into power versus resistance, and that all comes to a head in the finale. Even though it exists within this heightened world, the series mirrors so many real-life themes. What does it mean to you to be part of a project that feels so relevant? And what do you hope audiences, especially younger viewers, take away from this season and BB’s arc?
Genneya: That’s what’s so beautiful about this job. There’s so much safety, comfort, excitement, and so many different emotions that people can feel from watching something that we got to make over such a long period of time. That’s such an incredible thing to be a part of. And then to be involved in something that handles those themes in such a well-written, powerful, yet delicate way is truly an honor. What’s also so cool is that people can take things from the story and apply them to their own experiences as human beings and what it might mean to them personally.

Overall, first and foremost, I hope people are having fun watching it because it is entertainment. But one of the biggest themes of the season is the power of people and the power in numbers, and how much can be accomplished for the greater good when people come together and try to make things better as a whole. It doesn’t have to be on the same intense scale as the show or what BB is doing, but especially in the world today, it’s so important to not only look out for yourself, but also for the people around you.

I think a lot of people struggle with feeling a sense of community now, and there’s so much loneliness even though we have constant access to each other through our phones. There are small ways every day that you can help improve the lives of the people around you, whatever that looks like for you. At the end of the day, it’s about finding power in your own voice and understanding what it can do, not just for yourself, but for other people too.

PC: Spoken like a true artist. By the end of Season 2, the sacrifices BB has made finally pay off in the form of a new opportunity. It feels like one of those rare happy endings in this universe. What can you tell us about what that moment means for her moving forward? And is it as straightforward as it might seem?
Genneya: The way the season wrapped up for her felt like such a beautiful full-circle moment. I was excited because it almost feels like she can finally take a deep breath. All of the things she’s seen and done resulted in the best possible outcome she could have hoped for with the situation she was given.

Her ending is really about coming to terms with everything that was left behind throughout that journey, and I think she’s going to have to ask herself whether some of those sacrifices were worth it and how she wants to move forward from that. But I do think she’s found some sense of peace. Not necessarily calm, because there’s definitely a lot more work for her to do, let me tell you that. [laughs]

But it’s such a great way to close that chapter of her story and move her into this new phase of her life with more experience, more accomplishments, and a stronger sense of herself. I’m excited to see how she uses all of that moving forward.

PC: One of the things that stands out about this series is how it honors the source material while still carving out something new. You can feel the history and trajectory of this world. As someone getting to originate a character within that, are you an artist who likes knowing what’s coming ahead, or do you prefer discovering things as the story unfolds, which is one of the unique strengths of television as a medium? How does that shape your process?
Genneya: I love that. I like going with the flow of it. It allows more room to figure out the whys and why nots, and the motivations behind a character. Sometimes if you know exactly how something ends, there’s a more obvious throughline, and then you’re branching off of that instead of letting things naturally unfold and making choices in the moment.

I like reading my material the night before because I personally don’t like to overwork things. I’ll read through it a few times and then have conversations with whoever I’m working with that day, which for a lot of it was me and Michael together, so that made it extra fun.

I like not fully knowing and being able to react as if things are happening to me in real time.

PC: That goes back to what I was saying earlier and why your performance feels so lived-in because you’re processing new information as it’s coming and channeling it through the performance. As BB steps into this new phase of her life, there’s room for new dynamics to emerge around her. What aspects of her are you most interested in exploring or diving deeper into in Season 3? And are there any specific relationships or dynamics you’re most excited to further develop?
Genneya: I’d like to see more of her grief and how she processes loss. She keeps everything very close to the chest. We haven’t gotten to see her in a lot of vulnerable spaces. She’s very headstrong and focused on what she’s trying to accomplish, and we don’t see her falter very often. I think when she saw Daniel’s childhood bedroom, that was one of the rare moments where those emotions slipped through the cracks. Even then, it was still private. I’d love to explore more of that side of her.

I’d also love to see more of her and Karen together. That was such a beautiful moment, and I think there’s so much to explore there. I loved Karen and Ben’s dynamic in the original series, and I’d be interested to see what similarities and differences would come up as BB and Karen spend more time together.

To keep up with Genneya, follow her on Instagram. Stream Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 on Disney+ today.

Photo Credit: Tatiana Katkova