Ben Urich
Benjamin "Ben" Urich is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character usually appears in comic books featuring Daredevil and Spider-Man.
Ben Urich
Daredevil #153
(July 1978)
Roger McKenzie (writer)
Gene Colan (artist)
Benjamin Urich
- Front Line
- Daily Bugle
- New York Bulletin
Urich is a chain-smoking, tough-as-nails investigative journalist for the New York newspaper The Daily Bugle. Urich deduced the secret identity of Daredevil and has used him as a source of information and vice versa. To a lesser extent, he has a similar relationship with Spider-Man, whose alter ego Peter Parker was a photographer for the Bugle who occasionally accompanied Urich on assignments. Urich has used these connections to expose supervillains posing as businessmen including Kingpin and Green Goblin.
He has been portrayed by Joe Pantoliano in the 2003 film Daredevil. Ben Urich was also portrayed by Vondie Curtis-Hall in the first season of the Marvel Television streaming television series Daredevil, set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
Other versions[edit]
House of M[edit]
In the alternate timeline of the "House of M" reality, the Daily Bugle is a propaganda machine for the ruling mutant class. Urich is seen encouraging fellow reporter Kat Farrell to write what the people in charge want.[19]
MC2[edit]
Although Ben's nephew Phil Urich, is active in the MC2 reality, Ben is not shown. Felicity Hardy is seen reading a book entitled His Name was Spider-Man, written by Ben.
Marvel Noir[edit]
The story is set in 1933. Urich is a substance abusing reporter who is blackmailing Norman Osborn for money to feed his drug habit. He takes under his wing the social activist Peter Parker, whose youthful idealism contrasts his jaded cynicism.[20] During the course of the story, he "takes back control of his life" by giving Osborn's files to Felicia Hardy. He is shot dead by the Chameleon (impersonating J. Jonah Jameson).
Ultimate Marvel[edit]
In Ultimate Marvel continuity, Ben Urich is a somewhat younger top reporter at the Daily Bugle who befriends the newspaper's web page designer Peter Parker. Parker, as Spider-Man, sometimes feeds him information. He wrote a series of articles that took down Kingpin and received a book deal because of the project. He submitted incriminating evidence on the Kingpin to court (given to him by Peter Parker), and Kingpin had to leave the country. He was attacked by a vampire in Ultimate Spider-Man #95; as of Issue #96, Morbius appears to have cured his potential vampirism.[21] Unlike the mainstream counterpart, the Ultimate Ben Urich never had interaction with Daredevil.
Ben Urich is later seen as part of a round-table Bugle employee discussion on the secret identity of the new Spider-Man.[22]
Armor Wars[edit]
During the Secret Wars storyline, the Battleworld domain of Technopolis shows a variation of Ben Urich who was the uncle of Peter Urich who operates as Spider-Man. He and his nephew uncovered the truth about Technopolis' past that involved the airborne virus that makes everyone wear high-tech armors and were killed by Tony Stark.[23]
1872[edit]
During the Secret Wars storyline, the Battleworld domain of the Valley of Doom features a Wild West version of Ben Urich. Upon a boy informing Ben Urich that Turk Barrett and the rest of Mayor Wilson Fisk's men are attacking Red Wolf at Roxxon Dam, Ben Urich tips off Sheriff Steve Rogers about what is happening causing Sheriff Rogers to intervene.[24]
In other media[edit]
Television[edit]
Ben Urich appears in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) streaming television series Daredevil (2015), portrayed by Vondie Curtis-Hall.[25] This version is an African-American struggling journalist at the New York Bulletin, who is trying to take care of his Alzheimer's-afflicted wife Doris, as he is unable to afford her medical payments or move her to a retirement home. He also clashes regularly with his editor-in-chief Mitchell Ellison, with Ellison more interested in keeping Bulletin circulation numbers up to compete with social media while Ben is more interested in writing stories about important public matters. After writing a piece exposing corruption at Union Allied Construction, Ben attracts the interest of former Union Allied secretary Karen Page, and begins working with Karen and her new employers, Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson, to expose Wilson Fisk.[26] Eventually, his investigation leads him to begin working with Matt's alter-ego, the Devil of Hell's Kitchen.[27] As the season progresses, Ben is urged to no longer associate himself with Karen. However, after Karen manipulates Ben into visiting and interviewing Fisk's mother Marlene Vistain, he sees the need to take down the man once more.[28] Ben's dedication to the story eventually costs him his job after he suspects and accuses Ellison of being paid by Fisk to censor him. Later, when he tries to write his story and publish it on a blog, Fisk ambushes him at his apartment and strangles him to death with his bare hands as retaliation for speaking to Marlene, and he lies about being alone so that Fisk will not seek out Karen.[29]
Father Lantom later oversees Ben's funeral. During the service, Doris tells Karen that she embodies the traits Ben would have liked to have in a daughter and that he set up a life insurance plan for her. When Carl Hoffman, a corrupt detective that Fisk had threatened into killing his own partner, turns state's evidence on Fisk with the help of Nelson & Murdock, it is revealed that although Ben was wrong about Ellison, his suspicions that Fisk had a mole at the Bulletin are proven correct as Ellison's secretary Caldwell is arrested by the FBI for her involvement with Fisk's criminal activities. Ellison can only bow his head in guilt for not believing Ben until it was too late.[30]
In the second season, Ellison takes over the role Ben had played as Karen's mentor, assisting her in her investigation into Frank Castle's past, which eventually culminates in Ellison hiring Karen as a full-time reporter for the Bulletin after Nelson & Murdock closes due to friction between Matt and Foggy, and taking Ben's former office.[31] Out of guilt for her part in Ben's death, Karen keeps all of his old articles up on the walls, and heading into the third season, Karen also takes over Ben's role as Matt's newspaper confidant.
Film[edit]
Ben Urich appears in Daredevil (2003), played by Joe Pantoliano. This version is bald and works for the New York Post, as the rights to the Bugle were tied to the Spider-Man films, which are owned by Sony Pictures. He later discovers Daredevil's secret identity during his investigations into the Kingpin, but realizes that Daredevil does a great deal of good in the city and decides against making it public.