MCU’s Newest Star Genneya Walton Is Proof That Manifestations Work

Genneya Walton is joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe thanks to a combination of hard work, talent, and her very own superpower: manifestation. “In one of my notes from 2017 in my phone, I wrote, ‘I’m going to be a part of something like this,’” the 26-year-old says. The “this” is, of course, the MCU, which Walton joins as BB Urich in Disney+’s Daredevil: Born Again. The new series, which premiered on March 4, is a continuation of Netflix’s Daredevil, and stars returning cast members Charlie Cox, Deborah Ann Woll, and Vincent D’Onofrio.

As with most MCU projects, the cast of Daredevil: Born Again remains tight-lipped about what fans can expect from the nine-episode series. Walton plays a young journalist with an internet show, The BB Report — and she also happens to be the niece of Ben Urich, the investigative reporter who was murdered by crime lord Kingpin in the Netflix series.

She teases that things will be darker: “I’m really excited for them to re-experience the darkness, grittiness, and incredible fight choreography that we all loved from the previous show, but in a new, fresh way.” Daredevil: Born Again is set in New York City, which is also where Walton is currently living. During our Zoom interview, she’s situated on a couch in her low-lit apartment, perfectly matching the gloomy ambiance of the Disney+ series.

Daredevil may just be her most recent chapter, but the actor has an impressive resume — even though dance was her first love. Walton started taking classes in everything from ballet to tap when she was 6, and it was her “whole world.” When a friend she made through competitive dancing recommended her to a casting director, she landed her first role as Renata in 2014’s Isabelle Dances Into the Spotlight.

From there, the former dancer guest-starred in TV shows like Disney Channel’s Jessie and Nickelodeon’s The Thundermans before landing her first leading role in Netflix’s Project Mc² in 2015. Five years later, the California-born actor — despite Google claiming she’s from Chicago (“I get a good chuckle every single time”) — was cast in Kenya Barris’ fictionalized version of his life, #BlackAF. The sitcom, which also starred Rashida Jones, was Walton’s first experience going off script.

“It was very much a challenge, because it was so new to me,” she says. “I feel like it provided me the opportunity to grow as an artist being around incredible people like Kenya and Rashida.” Her TV family on #BlackAF also felt like “a legitimate family,” making that experience truly one-of-a-kind.

Even though #BlackAF only lasted one season, Walton found a new home in 2023, joining the cast of Never Have I Ever in its final season. “I fully remember having on-set anxiety,” she says of coming in as the newbie. Luckily, the cast, including Maitreyi Ramakrishnan and Darren Barnet, were “so much fun” to work with. “They obviously had magic happening there, so I was just so grateful to be able to hop in when things were already happening, and they welcomed me in,” she says. It was also her first time playing a character around her own age.

Eddie [Murphy] just goes for it. And as I’ve been going on in my career, I’ve been getting more comfortable with the idea of that.

That same year, she appeared in Candy Cane Lane, a holiday movie starring Eddie Murphy and Tracee Ellis Ross. “Eddie and Tracee are legends to me,” she says. “They are so fearless with how they just go about their characters in the scenes. You never know what you’re going to get, especially Eddie, who would trail off.” Watching the Academy Award-nominated actor in action taught Walton to get out of her head. “The fear of something not working can really hold you back from potentially making something wonderful,” she says. “Eddie just goes for it. And as I’ve been going on in my career, I’ve been getting more comfortable with the idea of that.”

Walton’s acting has matured over the years, and this next chapter with Daredevil is a chance for her to level up in a more serious genre for the first time. “It’s been an out-of-body experience being a part of such a highly anticipated series,” she says. “I was driving around L.A., seeing posters everywhere, and stuff just pops up on my timeline with people trying to theorize what’s going to be happening.” While Walton can’t confirm or deny if any of the fan theories are true, she says some things she’s seen on X (formerly Twitter) have been accurate. “That’s the fun in trying to figure out what happens,” she says, “and then it’ll be even more fun when they get to watch it and see whether or not they were right or wrong.”

One fan theory is there will be another Spider-Man crossover. Cox’s Daredevil became MCU canon when his alias, Matt Murdock, appeared in 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home as a lawyer to Tom Holland’s Peter Parker. With a Spider-Man mention in Episode 1, their worlds can collide again, which is on Walton’s wishlist. “I would love to hop on over into the Spidey universe,” she says. “Maybe we’re manifesting this together right now.” Getting to work in the Spider-Man universe would also make it possible for Walton to rub shoulders with her dream co-star, Zendaya. “I’ve always looked up to her, even before I started acting, so that’d be a wild crossover,” she says.

For now, she’s focused on Daredevil, which has already started production on Season 2. “It’s bananas that we get to start our next one before the first season is even out,” she says. “I’m so incredibly grateful for that and really excited for people to see BB and dive more into her story and do this all over again.”

When asked if Season 2 will be even darker than the first, Walton struggles to find the right words without getting herself into trouble: “I’ll just say yes and leave it at that.”