Who Is Kamar De Los Reyes? Daredevil: Born Again Tribute Explained

Contains spoilers for "Daredevil: Born Again" Episodes 1 and 2

The first thing viewers see on "Daredevil: Born Again" Episode 2 after the Marvel Television logo is a message reading: "In Loving Memory of Kamar de los Reyes." De los Reyes played Hector Ayala, aka the White Tiger, on the series. While there's some brief camera footage of him in Episode 1, Episode 2 hones in on the character, with Hector stopping a beating in a subway station. But when a man who turns out to be a police officer gets killed by an oncoming train, he's placed under arrest, with Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) becoming his attorney. 

De los Reyes passed away on December 24, 2023 from cancer. His wife, Sherri Saum, confirmed in an X, formerly known as Twitter, post commenting on footage from the series shown at New York Comic-Con that he had finished filming all his scenes, writing, "This is the project @kamardelosreyes was working on when he fell ill.. but he finished it and he was so proud of it. so badass. TY eternally @Daredevil @DDevilUpdates for loving him and giving him such support. It's bittersweet but i cannot wait to see."

Hector's story remains open by the end of Episode 2, with Matt finding the man he saved to try to get him to testify on his client's behalf. There's still more to Hector's storyline for fans to see, and hopefully, the performance gets fans to look back on the actor's immense body of work. 

Kamar de los Reyes had been acting since the 1980s, but he got his big break with the soap opera "One Life to Live" beginning in 1995. He appeared regularly in that show until 2009, with plenty of other roles in store for him. De los Reyes had a memorable turn on "Blue Bloods" as the villain Santana, whose gang is responsible for the death of Vinny Cruz (Sebastian Sozzi), Jamie Reagan's (Will Estes) partner. 

Some of his other noteworthy credits include "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," "Sleepy Hollow," and "The Rookie." In fact, "Daredevil: Born Again" isn't even his first superhero project, as he had a brief stint on the X-Men-adjacent series, "The Gifted," which was canceled after only two seasons. 

De los Reyes had been married to his wife, Sherri Saum, since 2007. She's also an actor from the world of soaps, as she starred in over 300 episodes of "Sunset Beach" during the 1990s. The Puerto Rican actor is also survived by his twin sons he had with Saum in 2014, as well as a child from a previous relationship. 

Upon Kamar de los Reyes' death, news outlets noted that his stint with cancer was brief. He continued acting throughout this time and had a recurring role on The CW's "All American" beginning in 2022. He played Coach Montes, the head coach at Coastal California University. His final performance on the show came in Season 6's "Things Done Changed," which debuted posthumously in 2024. Late that season in the episode "Mass Appeal," it's revealed Montes took a job in the NFL, sending him off with a positive storyline. 

Another one of de los Reyes' posthumous releases was the 2024 video game, "Indiana Jones and the Great Circle," where he voiced Barranca. The game is dedicated to his memory as well as Tony Todd's, who passed away in November 2024. Todd also has another posthumous release coming out this year, reprising his role of William Bludworth in "Final Destination: Bloodlines."

White Tiger in "Daredevil: Born Again" is an incredible role for de los Reyes to play before his passing. He was the first Latino and Puerto Rican superhero in Marvel Comics, deriving his powers from a magical amulet, which is referenced in the Disney+ series. He's an important figure in comic book history, and even with only two episodes so far, it's great to see how de los Reyes infused the character with such depth. 

The first two episodes of "Daredevil: Born Again" are on Disney+ now.