As Disney reclaims rights to Marvel's Defenders franchise, it will leave Netflix
Key Takeaways:
- Disney has yet to reveal their plans for the shows, and a representative for the company did not immediately respond to News' request for comment.
- The characters were licensed to Netflix in 2013 to help expand on the MCU films mentioned in the shows, despite the fact that Disney owns Marvel Studios.
A few familiar faces are returning to Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
According to Entertainment Weekly, the Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, and The Punisher franchises will leave Netflix on March 1. The rights will revert to Disney once the streamer's license expires.
Disney has yet to reveal their plans for the shows, and a representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment from News.
Following the appearance of several Defenders characters in recent Marvel titles, the Netflix Originals have been confirmed as canon with Disney's ever-expanding MCU universe.
Charlie Cox created a cameo appearance in the recently released Spider-Man: No Way Home, recreating his eponymous Daredevil role as Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer, and vigilante. His adversary, kingpin (Vincent D'Onofrio), was previously seen in the Disney+ series Hawkeye.
Although Disney owns Marvel Studios, the characters were licensed to Netflix in 2013 to help expand on the MCU films mentioned in the shows. When Disney started focusing on its Marvel shows for Disney+ in 2018, the lineup was abruptly canceled.
Since Daredevil was canceled in 2018, Cox, 39, has remained friends with D'Onofrio, 62.
Cox told The Hollywood Reporter that he hopes they'll reunite onscreen again after both of their characters created a recent comeback.
"Look, I have no idea what anyone's plans are at this point," Cox said, "but I assume there's more for us to do." "I know a little bit about it — not a lot, but enough to get by. I'm imagining, hoping, that our worlds will collide once more because the work we've done together in history has been a lot of fun, and he's a fantastic actor."
"Every conversation must begin with, 'What do you know?' because you must be cautious," he added. "It's a lot of fun."