While the Avengers are trying to save the entire planet on the big screen — thanks Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, et al — The Defenders are busy keeping New York safe on Netflix.
And while the Marvel-Disney integration means Marvel’s films are good, clean fun for the whole family, The Defenders, an eight-episode crossover miniseries arriving on Netflix on August 18, is free to be more adult.
So would it make any sense for the two ensembles to collide? Mike Colter and Finn Jones, who play Defenders Luke Cage and Iron Fist respectively, had a lot to say on the matter.
“It would be really nice to see the Avengers come to the Netflix world. Because I think it’s way more interesting to see those characters fleshed out the same way as our characters are, rather than just see our characters go up to do some big [expletive] fight scene. There’s nothing cool about that,” said Jones, speaking to a roundtable of reporters back in January.
Colter agreed, adding: “It would be probably more believable, because when there’s not some huge universal thing going on, with some intergalactic thing invading the planet or something like that … Stark is up in the tower, and everybody’s just hanging out.”
Jones said it would be “[expletive] brilliant” to see Tony Stark in Harlem, but it would be equally cool to see Luke Cage in a different universe fighting off a dark overlord.
“That would be cool — Luke Cage and Iron Fist in space,” he brainstormed.
Co-star Charlie Cox, who plays Daredevil, suggested that The Avengers are a showy bunch, while The Defenders come from a place of shame and loneliness.
“Tonally and in terms of the source material, it works well for the Avengers [that] there’s a pride about who they are. They’re very chest-out, gung-ho, and that’s very cool to watch — I love that stuff. But to make this work on TV, and as you say [as] street-level heroes, I think we have to go the opposite way,” said Cox.
Krysten Ritter, who rounds off the Defenders as Jessica Jones, said she’s not well-versed enough on the Marvel films to comment about the ongoing debate.
“But I much prefer a boots on the ground kind of approach to this stuff, because then, as an actor, I can always find truth in it and make it truthful for myself. I never really think of Jessica Jones as someone who has superpowers. I just don’t. I just think of her as being really strong, then I start to think if I punch somebody it will actually work,” said Ritter.
Sigourney Weaver, who plays Alexandra Reid, head adversary to the Defenders, said the television shows are easier to relate to.
“I’ve seen a few of [the films], but what I like about this is that it’s Marvel with a little ‘m’, not a capital ‘M’. So it’s not apocalyptic, and it doesn’t take place on different planets — it’s all mostly in Hell’s Kitchen and in Harlem,” said Weaver.
“It’s a city that I can really relate to and I feel that it’s gritty, it’s beautifully shot, and I can relate to them much better. I like the Marvel other universe, but I am happy to be working with the universe with a little ‘u’.”
The Defenders made their first appearance in the comic book world in 1971, while The Avengers made their first appearance in 1963. The first film to be released as part of the MCU was Iron Man in 2008; the first Marvel show to hit Netflix was Daredevil in 2015.
Krysten Ritter on Jessica Jones:
“She’s still kind of an [expletive]. She’s still hitting the bottle. She is dealing with popularity and eyes on her. That’s not the easiest thing for someone who’s as reclusive and isolated as she is. We’re picking up not too long after we see her in season one. She’s dealing with the aftermath of killing someone, which is not easy, as someone who already hates herself [and is] self-loathing. But she’s still funny.”
Charlie Cox on Matt Murdock/Daredevil:
“[The Defenders] find different odd ways of expressing [how] they get to relate with one another. We’re trying to find moments where Matt is essentially learning off these guys, not just what they can and can’t do, but: how do they deal with the same pain that he deals with on a daily basis? How do they not feel like they’re freaks of nature and outcasts of society?”
Mike Colter on Luke Cage:
“Cage may change, but I think for me, I would like to be as earnest as Cage is. There’s something about him, his moral compass, something that he really wants to achieve. Unfortunately, I’m not as earnest as he is, I’m not the same kind of guy he is. It’s something to strive for. I look at it go and say, ‘Wow, that would be great to be that way.’ And I’m not. But I’m a work-in-progress.”
Finn Jones on Danny Rand/Iron Fist:
“I don’t consider Danny a superhero at all. Not yet, anyway. I see him as a [expletive]-up kid, a lost boy, who’s trying to find his purpose in the world … He’s a typical 25-year-old who doesn’t know what he’s doing in life, what his responsibility is meant to be. In the beginning of Defenders, he is more astute in his purpose and drive, and it’s one of the things that is driving the team to actually move forward and come together to take on this evil.”
Sigourney Weaver on Alexandra Reid:
“I’m a multilayered character, and I get to have quite a lot of interaction with the four heroes, which is fun for me. We don’t share the same priorities, but it’s a delicious character. The funny thing is, you get one script [at a time], so you don’t really know quite where you’re going to end up. It’s like opening a surprise package every couple of weeks and you go, ‘Oh! I didn’t know that that would happen.’ … I get to be, perhaps you could say, an adversarial character in these shows.”