In October and November of last year, Iron Fist, Luke Cage and Daredevil were all canceled in quick succession, marking beginning of the end for the Marvel Netflix era. To make matters worse, any hope of a swift resurrection for the properties was later dashed by a Variety report published in December, which alleged that Disney is contractually forbidden from reviving these shows until two years after cancellation.
A couple of months later, the bad news continued with both The Punisher and Jessica Jones getting the axe. And on top of all that, we now have a report from IndieWire telling us that the wait for any of the Defenders to return could be even longer than previously thought.
The outlet relays word from a production executive at the Avengers: Endgame premiere that Disney has been warned by lawyers not to even think about new content featuring the Marvel Netflix characters until the two-year mark. This means that anyone holding out hope that Marvel Studios will spend the next two years preparing for the Defenders’ triumphant comeback are sadly mistaken.
Indeed, it sounds like the next outings from Iron Fist, Luke Cage and Daredevil are forbidden from even going into development until 2020, while Disney can only start work on new Punisher and Jessica Jones material in 2021.
All in all, this probably isn’t the news that fans want to hear, but for what it’s worth, Marvel Television president Jeph Loeb mentioned earlier this year at the TCA winter press tour that he “would not be surprised” if the Netflix shows found a way of reemerging elsewhere. Granted, that day could still be a long wait away, but in the meantime, Jessica Jones is set to officially bring the Marvel Netflix era to a close when its third season drops later this year
