Yup, that’s Joe Pantoliano as Ben Urich and standing across from him is none-other-than writer/director Kevin Smith (more from Smith later in this article)! And in the second and third shots, the mystery man is director Mark Stephen Johnson. Now just check out the logo on the clapboard. Isn’t that enough to get your drooling like an idiot? Now as I was saying about Kevin Smith, we’ve also got a brief on-set interview with the man as he talks about his character, Ben Affleck, Joey Pants and of course, the Man Without Fear. This is what he had to say:

On April 2, 2002, writer/actor/director Kevin Smith, who is also known for being one of the most respected writers for Marvel Comics’ “Daredevil” series, made a one-day cameo appearance in the film “Daredevil” on location at Crenshaw Hospital in Los Angeles. Kevin plays “Jack Kirby” (note Marvel reference), a morgue attendant in a scene with Joe Pantoliano, who plays reporter Ben Urich.

The following are quotes were obtained from a brief on-set interview with Kevin:

Q: WHAT IS IT LIKE TO BE IN A DAREDEVIL MOVIE?

KS: “Pretty Awesome! It’s sort of like playing Daredevil himself – which I’m not in the shape for. It was really generous of [director] Mark [Steven Johnson] to put me in the film.”

Q: WHO DO YOU PLAY?

KS: “I play a forensics assistant who is willing to take some cash to give Urich the inside dope.”

Q: WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON WHAT YOU’VE SEEN FROM THE FILM?

KS: “When I did a costume fitting, they let me take a peek at the Daredevil costume and it is flat-out phenomenal! It’s as close as you can get to the comic book page without looking ridiculous. These guys know what they’re doing.

Q: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF MARK STEVEN JOHNSON AS DIRECTOR?

KS: “Mark is as passionate – if not more so – than anyone can be about making a ‘Daredevil’ movie. He’s done heavy-duty research. He’s read all the important Daredevil work, and the not-so-important Daredevil work – like my own – and he’s certainly not going to let any Daredevil fans down from what I’ve seen.

Q: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF BEN AFFLECK AS DAREDEVIL?

KS: “As long as Affleck leaves his ham-fisted theatrics – the ones he lends to my pictures – in the trailer, he’ll be awesome. He’s always been a big fan, long before the film was a twinkle in anyone’s mind. Ben has always said that the only movie he would ever put a costume on for would be a Daredevil flick. This is probably a dream come true for him.”

Q: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE REST OF THE CAST?

KS: “I think Mark [Steven Johnson] got incredibly lucky to surround himself with a cast so willing to put on funny outfits – in addition to the fact that they’re pretty intelligent, believable, strong performers.”

Q: WHAT’S IT LIKE DOING YOUR SCENE WITH JOE PANTOLIANO?

KS: “I was delighted when I saw his name on the call sheet. I mean, ‘Guido the Killer Pimp!’ [from “Risky Business”]. You can throw a rock and you hit a stellar performance from Joe Pantoliano: ‘Goonies,’ ‘The Matrix,’ ‘The Sopranos,’ ‘The Fugitive.’ He’s incredibly well-cast in this role.

ILLUSTRATED NARRATIVE

“Desperadoes: Quiet of the Grave”, Jeff Mariotte (WildStorm)
“The First Adventures of Miss Catterina Poe”, Caitlin R. Kiernan (The Dreaming #56; Vertigo)
“Freezes Over”, Brian Azzarello (Hellblazer #158-161; Vertigo)
“Quiver”, Kevin Smith (Green Arrow #1-10; DC Comics)
“Weird Western Tales”, Various Authors (Vertigo)

Filmmaker and Star Wars fan Kevin Smith (Dogma) will host a SCI FI Channel original special on the saga at 8 p.m. ET/PT May 12 in anticipation of the May 16 release of Star Wars: Episode II–Attack of the Clones. In the one-hour special, Smith will present a collection of fan-made, Star Wars-themed spoofs and documentaries, each competing to win a Star Wars Fan Film Award.

Categories will include the Young Jedi Award (films made by directors under 18), animation, Audience Award (selected by online viewers) and a special George Lucas Selects Award, which will be announced by the Star Wars creator himself. The special will also feature clips from Episode II.

Dear Comics Fans,

We have just been informed this week that our book trade distributor has filed for bankrupcy (Chapter 11). They will continue to operate and hopefully recover – and we will support this all we can (as our industry needs them, and they are good people) – but unfortunately, this has happened at a time when they owed us an enormous sum of money (over $80,000.00 minus returns). And to make matters worse, the most recent check they cut us, for almost $20,000.00, bounced this week, in turn causing the last 30 checks we wrote to printers, conventions, cartoonists – practically every aspect of the business – to bounce (or be held) in turn.

To put it bluntly, even with all the hard work we’ve put in over the years, if we don’t raise $20,000 this month, it could realistically force us to suspend publishing operations for the foreseeable future. It’s hard to believe but a big domino has fallen right on top of us at the worst time possible. So, that leaves us no choice but to be honest and ask for your help.

If 400-500 of you can find it in your hearts to each spend around fifty bucks on our core list of books below, this would literally pull us through – We mean that. We’ve got such a strong future schedule, and so many cool things to announce soon (including two more Alan Moore projects and two Film & TV projects), that I’d hate to think that we’d have to pull the plug right before we just were about to arrive. In any event, if you can find it in your hearts to help us out, we will be eternally grateful. We’ll be manning the phones personally on this “drive,” and we’ll also be sure to keep you informed — hopefully letting all of you know in three-to-four weeks that everything’s okay (with your help, that is…).

On behalf of Brett Warnock and myself.

Truly, your friend thru comics,
Chris Staros
Top Shelf Productions

“Miramax is like the overnight sensation that for a little while bought into their press and moved away from the things that helped define them,” says Kevin Smith, whose career as a cult filmmaker began after Miramax released his $27,000 indie Clerks in 1994. “They overextended and overreached, and now it seems like they’re reining it all back in… This is the company that made Pulp Fiction, that put out The Piano and The Crying Game–why on earth would they make something like Kate & Leopold or She’s All That?”