After guest spots in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett, Rosario Dawson is finally getting the chance to show us what she can really do under pounds of prosthetics in Ahsoka, the latest Star Wars series streaming on Disney Plus. SW fans have taken Dawson into their hearts as the live-action incarnation of Ahsoka Tano, so she’s likely to remain a part of the saga for a long while yet. Longer, we hope, than her tenure in the Marvel universe which sadly ended rather abruptly.
Dawson, of course, played Claire Temple in the batch of Netflix series from Marvel Television that we now refer to as the Defenders Saga. First appearing in Daredevil, Claire ended up becoming a friend (and lover, in the case of Luke Cage) to all of the Defenders, featuring prominently in Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Defenders, and cameoing in Jessica Jones. The only one she didn’t manage to show up in was The Punisher.
Unfortunately, though, Claire is one of the majority of Defenders Saga characters we’ve yet to see again since the franchise’s demise. But with her chances for a comeback increasing, could Dawson’s leading lady status in Ahsoka pave the way for a role in a future Marvel Studios show? Let’s take a look…
Daredevil: Born Again is the perfect place for Claire Temple’s return, but Marvel Studios already has its own Night Nurse
Naturally, if Claire was to return anywhere in the MCU, it would be in Daredevil: Born Again. On top of bringing back Charlie Cox as (Claire’s ex, don’t forget) Matt Murdock, Vincent D’Onofrio is on board as Kingpin, and Jon Bernthal is returning as Frank Castle. Krysten Ritter is also widely believed to be popping up as Jessica. To date, however, there’s been no indication that Dawson is circling the series.
Still, with a whopping 18 episodes of room, there’s always hope that Claire could at least drop by for a brief cameo. It’s certainly not Dawson stopping it from happening, anyway. When speaking to THR in September 2022, the actress declared that Disney “know[s] where I am” and she’d be more than up for reprising her role:
“So, yeah, I’d be super curious, but I’m just so stoked for everybody, though. It’s been a long time coming. I was really excited to know that all of our shows are actually part of the MCU now, with Charlie [Cox] and Vincent [D’Onofrio] coming over into these different projects now. So, yeah, 18 episodes [of Daredevil: Born Again]? I’m there! Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, they know where I am.”
Unfortunately, it seems Marvel Studios has never been all that interested in the Night Nurse character. Daredevil season one showrunner Steven S. DeKnight once revealed that Marvel forbade the series from utilizing Claire’s comic book alias because the movies were handling another incarnation of Night Nurse, which turned out to be Rachel McAdams’ Christine Palmer in Doctor Strange. As it happened, though, Christine’s MCU arc went in a wildly different direction from her comics counterpart.
In the source material, Night Nurse is a mantle used by various medical professionals who specialize in aiding the superhero community of New York when they need patching up. Claire was always there for the Defenders when they needed it, but perhaps her return could see her finally officially taking on the Night Nurse name and widening her clientele to other heroes. The Young Avengers are bound to pick up a few boo-boos as they start superheroing. I’m just saying…
All in all, Dawson is just as up for more Claire Temple as the fans are, and though there is the opportunity for her to re-emerge in certain upcoming Disney Plus projects, it all depends on whether Marvel Studios knows what a great character, and actress, it has on its hands.