Daniel Shaw is the secondary antagonist of the 2007 spy comedy-drama tv series Chuck.
Shaw was a dedicated and decorated CIA agent who was obsessed hunting down the hostile organization known as the Ring, believing that they killed his wife, Evelyn. Eventually he discovered the real circumstances surrounding his wife's death, after which he went rogue and became an agent of The Ring and ultimately, mentor-turned-nemesis of Charles "Chuck" Bartowski.
He was portrayed by Brandon Routh, who also played Todd Ingram in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, and Neron in DC's Legends of Tomorrow.
Biography[]
Daniel Shaw was born to John and Mary Shaw. It is mentioned in "Chuck Versus the Other Guy" that Shaw previously taught at the United States Military Academy in West Point. He eventually met and married fellow agent, Evelyn Shaw, and they were assigned to gather intelligence on the Ring roughly five years prior to his debut in "Chuck Versus Operation Awesome". Shaw admitted he always tried to protect her, and he then believed this is what led to her being killed in the line of duty.
When he first meets Chuck, Shaw insisted Chuck shoot him. After Chuck's refusal, he took a pill, gave Chuck an envelope to only open after the Ring agent left, and shot himself in the shoulder. The pill he took stopped his heart temporarily, and the letter explained where to find the tools needed to save him. The Ring believed Shaw dead at that point.
History[]
He is a villainous counterpart of Chuck, initially a good guy and solid member of Team Bartowski before he went rogue. After discovering Sarah Walker has been the one to shoot his wife, he planned his revenge, defecting to the Ring and luring Sarah to Paris where he planned to kill her. Chuck, however, rode to the rescue and shot Shaw, who fell into the Seine where he was presumably rescued by Ring operatives. When he returns in Chuck Versus the Subway, his method to destroy Chuck's ability to access the Intersect is to create emotional turmoil, and he murders Chuck's father, Stephen while Chuck watches. In Chuck Versus the Ring Part 2, he loses the final confrontation with Chuck and Sarah and goes to prison.
He returns in season 5 having added Chuck to the list he wants revenge upon. Corrupt CIA agent Clyde Decker was on Shaw's payroll and served as his operative, since Shaw was still in a Federal prison. He ordered Decker to ruin Chuck and his friends' lives, so he tried to prevent Chuck from saving Sarah after she was poisoned, removed the Intersect from Chuck (Chuck Versus the Cliffhanger), froze Carmichael Industries assets, leaving Chuck no capital (Chuck Versus the Zoom), puts a hit on Morgan Grimes, has Agent Casey arrested for murder (Chuck Versus the Business Trip), and tries to frame Chuck for the cyber crime of the decade (Chuck Versus the Hackoff). After Decker is killed, Shaw escapes from jail to take his revenge on Chuck and his team. He last appears in Chuck Versus the Santa Suit when he shoots Casey, captures Sarah and tries to freeze her to death, and fights Chuck. He again loses, beaten by the Bartowski siblings, and is returned to prison where the cyber crime intended to frame Chuck is laid at his door.
Trivia[]
- Daniel Shaw is noted for being the first and only person Chuck has actually attempted to kill; once after Shaw tried to kill Sarah in Paris, and once after their battle in the Season 3 finale, though in that case, Chuck deliberately chose not to kill him.
- He is the main antagonist of Season 3 and the first-half of Season 5.
- Despite their differences, Shaw and Chuck shares many similarities, making him a suitable rival for Chuck:
- Both lost a loved member of their families, Evelyn Shaw and Stephen Bartowski.
- They are both talented at thinking of plans which rarely fail.
- They are both skilled fighters, though Chuck was not as good as Shaw during his first appearance.
- Both dislike using guns, though Shaw is shown to no longer care after turning rogue.
- Both have been in a relationship with Sarah Walker.
- They were both members of Team Bartowski.
- Both are turned into a human intersect at some point, but lose it later.
- Both of them are outsiders.
- Shaw's character is vaguely similar to that of Devon Woodcomb's original concept, as the latter was meant to be revealed as an enemy spy at the end of the first season, but was ultimately kept as a civilian due to his popularity with the fans. The fan base, however, expressed a dislike for Shaw, for being a blockade to a "Chuck and Sarah" relationship.
- Routh is the second Superman actor to play a villainous role; the first was Christopher Reeve (who played Lawrence Muller in TV movie Bump in the Night) and the third was Henry Cavill (who played August Walker in Mission: Impossible - Fallout, who ironically is very similar to the hero, Ethan Hunt).
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