''Marvel's Iron Fist'' is an American television series created by
Scott Buck
Scott Randall Buck is an American television writer. Buck has written for several television series including '' Six Feet Under'', ''Rome'', Showtime's '' Dexter'', ''Everybody Loves Raymond'', ''Coach'', ''Inhumans'', ''The Oblongs'' and '' Iron ...
for the streaming service
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
, based on the
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
character
Iron Fist. It is set in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by ...
(MCU), acknowledging the continuity of
the franchise's films, and was the fourth
Marvel Netflix series leading to the crossover miniseries ''
The Defenders'' (2017). The series was produced by
Marvel Television
Marvel Television was an American television production company responsible for live-action and animated (through Marvel Animation) television shows and direct-to-DVD series based on characters from Marvel Comics. The division was based at affi ...
in association with
ABC Studios
ABC Signature is an American television Filmmaking#Production, production studio that is a subsidiary of Disney Television Studios, a division of Walt Disney Television, which is part of the List of assets owned by The Walt Disney Company#Disne ...
, with Buck serving as
showrunner
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
for the
first season and
Raven Metzner
M. Raven Metzner is an American screenwriter and producer.
Career
Raven started his career with the movie '' Elektra'' before moving on to television projects such as ''Clue'', '' Falling Skies'' and '' Sleepy Hollow''. Metzner later replaced ...
taking over for the
second
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...
.
Finn Jones
Finn Jones (born Terence Jones; 24 March 1988) is an English actor known for his roles as Loras Tyrell in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2016) and Danny Rand / Iron Fist in the Netflix television shows '' Iron Fist'' (2017–2018), ...
stars as
Danny Rand / Iron Fist
Danny is a masculine given name. It is related to the male name Daniel. It may refer to:
People
* Danny Altmann, British immunologist
*Danny Antonucci, Canadian animator, director, producer, and writer
*Danny Baker (born 1957), English journali ...
, a martial arts expert with the ability to call upon a mystical power known as the "Iron Fist".
Jessica Henwick
Jessica Yu-Li Henwick (born 30 August 1992) is a BAFTA nominated English actress, writer and director. She is known for her roles as Nymeria Sand in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' (2015–2017), X-wing pilot Jessika Pava in the film '' S ...
,
Tom Pelphrey
Thomas J. Pelphrey (born July 28, 1982) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Jonathan Randall and Mick Dante in the CBS television series ''Guiding Light'' and ''As the World Turns'' respectively, Kurt Bunker in the Ci ...
,
Jessica Stroup
Jessica Leigh Stroup (born October 23, 1986) is an American actress, best known for her role as Erin Silver on '' 90210'' (2008–2013), Max Hardy on ''The Following'' (2014–2015) and Joy Meachum on '' Iron Fist'' (2017–2018), which is set i ...
, and
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan (; born 1 May 1984) is a British actor from Greater Manchester. He is best known for playing Akthar in the play ''The History Boys'' (2004–2006) and its film adaptation (2006), Paul Jatri in the BBC One comedy drama series ''Last ...
also star, with
Ramón Rodríguez,
Rosario Dawson
Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent drama ''Kids''. Her subsequent film roles include '' He Got Game'' (1998), ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (2001), ''Men in Bl ...
and
David Wenham
David Wenham (born 21 September 1965) is an Australian actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his roles as Faramir in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy, Friar Carl in ''Van Helsing'', Dilios in ''300'' and ...
joining them for the first season, and
Simone Missick
Simone Missick (née Cook; born January 19, 1982) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Detective Misty Knight in ''Luke Cage'', a role she also plays in '' The Defenders' ...
and
Alice Eve
Alice Sophia Eve (born ) is a British actress. Her movie career includes roles in ''She's Out of My League'', ''Men in Black 3'', ''Star Trek Into Darkness'', and '' Before We Go''. She has had recurring roles on the TV series ''Entourage'' and ...
joining for season two. After a film based on Iron Fist was in the works at
Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...
for over a decade, development for the series began in late 2013 at Marvel Television with inspiration taken from martial arts films. Buck was hired as showrunner in December 2015, Jones was cast as Rand in February 2016, and Brett Chan served as the stunt coordinator for the first season. Metzner was revealed to be showrunning the second season in July 2017, with Clayton Barber taking over as the fight coordinator. Filming took place in New York City.
The first, 13-episode season was released in its entirety on Netflix on March 17, 2017. It received generally negative reviews from critics, but third-party data analytics determined that the series had strong viewership. A second, 10-episode season was released on September 7, 2018, to mixed but improved reviews. Netflix cancelled ''Iron Fist'' on October 12, 2018. All of the Marvel Netflix series were removed from Netflix on March 1, 2022, after Disney regained the license for them. They began streaming on
Disney+
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...
from March 16.
Premise
In the
first season, after being presumed dead for 15 years,
Danny Rand
Iron Fist (Daniel Thomas "Danny" Rand) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane, Iron Fist first appeared in ''Marvel Premiere'' #15 (May 1974). The character is ...
returns to New York City to reclaim his family company from
Harold Meachum
Harold "Harry" Meachum is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a sinister businessman, primarily a foe of Iron Fist. In his original appearances in comics, he is depicted ...
and his children
Ward Meachum
Ward Meachum is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. In his original comic book appearances, he is depicted as the brother of Harold Meachum and the uncle of Joy Meachum.
Ward was portrayed by Tom Pe ...
and
Joy Meachum. When a threat emerges, Rand must choose between his family's legacy and his duties as the Iron Fist.
In the
second season, after the events of ''
The Defenders'' (2017), Rand steps up to protect New York in
Matt Murdock
Daredevil is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Daredevil was created by Literary editor, writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby. The c ...
's absence, until a new enemy threatens Rand's identity and those he cares about.
Cast and characters
*
Finn Jones
Finn Jones (born Terence Jones; 24 March 1988) is an English actor known for his roles as Loras Tyrell in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2016) and Danny Rand / Iron Fist in the Netflix television shows '' Iron Fist'' (2017–2018), ...
as
Danny Rand / Iron Fist
Danny is a masculine given name. It is related to the male name Daniel. It may refer to:
People
* Danny Altmann, British immunologist
*Danny Antonucci, Canadian animator, director, producer, and writer
*Danny Baker (born 1957), English journali ...
:
A billionaire
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
monk and martial artist, proficient in kung-fu, with the ability to call upon the mystical power of the Iron Fist.
Jones described the character as "someone struggling to find his identity".
He identifies with the character's loneliness because he, too, is an orphan.
He noted that "Danny gets really stressed and really pissed off sometimes, and I understand ...
isoptimism and where that comes from."
In preparation for the role, Jones studied
kung fu, wushu, and
tai chi
Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called "shadowboxing", is an neijia, internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and medita ...
, along with weight training,
Buddhist philosophy
Buddhist philosophy refers to the philosophical investigations and systems of inquiry that developed among various schools of Buddhism in India following the parinirvana of The Buddha and later spread throughout Asia. The Buddhist path combi ...
, and
meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...
.
Toby Nichols portrays a young Danny Rand.
*
Jessica Henwick
Jessica Yu-Li Henwick (born 30 August 1992) is a BAFTA nominated English actress, writer and director. She is known for her roles as Nymeria Sand in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' (2015–2017), X-wing pilot Jessika Pava in the film '' S ...
as
Colleen Wing
Colleen Wing is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Descended from a family of samurai, Wing is a Japanese martial artist who avenged her grandfather's death with the help of the superhero Iron Fis ...
:
An ally of Rand, a martial artist who runs her own dojo, Chikara Dojo, in New York City.
Henwick felt the word that defined Wing most was "alone,” saying, "She doesn't want to be anyone's love interest and open herself up in that way."
In her portrayal, Henwick also tried "to pull out that sort of very dry humor that
ing
Ing, ING or ing may refer to:
Art and media
* '' ...ing'', a 2003 Korean film
* i.n.g, a Taiwanese girl group
* The Ing, a race of dark creatures in the 2004 video game '' Metroid Prime 2: Echoes''
* "Ing", the first song on The Roches' 1992 ...
has, and that no-bullshit New-Yorker demeanor" from the comics' version of the character.
*
Tom Pelphrey
Thomas J. Pelphrey (born July 28, 1982) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Jonathan Randall and Mick Dante in the CBS television series ''Guiding Light'' and ''As the World Turns'' respectively, Kurt Bunker in the Ci ...
as
Ward Meachum
Ward Meachum is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. In his original comic book appearances, he is depicted as the brother of Harold Meachum and the uncle of Joy Meachum.
Ward was portrayed by Tom Pe ...
:
The son of Harold Meachum, a childhood acquaintance of Rand. His work building up Rand Enterprises with his sister Joy is threatened by Rand's return.
Although Ward is a character from the comics, Pelphrey noted "we're not necessarily beholden to representing him
n the seriesexactly as he appears in the comic book."
Stroup said that Ward would experience some "male angst" on Rand's return, because "Ward would have been the one who picked on
and
or AND may refer to:
Logic, grammar, and computing
* Conjunction (grammar), connecting two words, phrases, or clauses
* Logical conjunction in mathematical logic, notated as "∧", "⋅", "&", or simple juxtaposition
* Bitwise AND, a boolea ...
when he was little, so as pure and innocent and great as Iron Fist is, he comes in and he causes some problems" there.
Ilan Eskenazi portrays a teenage Ward Meachum.
*
Jessica Stroup
Jessica Leigh Stroup (born October 23, 1986) is an American actress, best known for her role as Erin Silver on '' 90210'' (2008–2013), Max Hardy on ''The Following'' (2014–2015) and Joy Meachum on '' Iron Fist'' (2017–2018), which is set i ...
as
Joy Meachum:
The daughter of Harold Meachum, a childhood acquaintance of Rand. Her work building up Rand Enterprises with her brother Ward is threatened by Rand's return.
Stroup said that Joy "absolutely loves" Rand, and his return to New York is "like this rebirth of what she once was, and she gets to ask these questions about herself because he's posing them to her." Stroup said that Joy would initially be unsure whether Rand is who he says he is.
Aimee Laurence portrays a young Joy Meachum.
*
Ramón Rodríguez as
Bakuto
''Bakuto'' (博徒) were itinerant gamblers active in Japan from the 18th century to the mid-20th century. They were one of two forerunners (the other being ''tekiya'', or peddlers) to modern Japanese organized crime syndicates called ''yakuza'' ...
: A leader of a faction of
The Hand and Colleen Wing's sensei.
*
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan (; born 1 May 1984) is a British actor from Greater Manchester. He is best known for playing Akthar in the play ''The History Boys'' (2004–2006) and its film adaptation (2006), Paul Jatri in the BBC One comedy drama series ''Last ...
as
Davos
, neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch
, twintowns =
}
Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alpine resort town and a municipality in the Prättigau/Davos R ...
:
A skilled martial artist who is the son of Lei Kung. Rand's former best friend in
K'un-Lun, Davos grew envious when Rand became the Iron Fist. Dhawan first appeared in the ninth episode of the first season; he noted that the majority of Davos' storyline would be explored in a potential second season.
*
Rosario Dawson
Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent drama ''Kids''. Her subsequent film roles include '' He Got Game'' (1998), ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (2001), ''Men in Bl ...
as
Claire Temple
Claire Temple is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is a medical doctor primarily affiliated with the superhero Luke Cage and is one of his early love interests.
Starting in 2015, a versio ...
: A former nurse from Hell's Kitchen who joins Wing's dojo. Dawson reprises her role from other
Marvel Netflix series.
*
David Wenham
David Wenham (born 21 September 1965) is an Australian actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his roles as Faramir in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy, Friar Carl in ''Van Helsing'', Dilios in ''300'' and ...
as
Harold Meachum
Harold "Harry" Meachum is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a sinister businessman, primarily a foe of Iron Fist. In his original appearances in comics, he is depicted ...
:
A ruthless corporate leader, co-founder of Rand Enterprises. He was partners with Rand's parents at the time of their deaths.
Regarding Harold's relationship with his children, Joy and Ward, Wenham said the dynamic between the three of them "is complex, to say the least. It's multilayered, it’s multidimensional, it's surprising, and it’s forever changing, depending on the circumstances."
*
Simone Missick
Simone Missick (née Cook; born January 19, 1982) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Detective Misty Knight in ''Luke Cage'', a role she also plays in '' The Defenders' ...
as
Misty Knight
Mercedes "Misty" Knight is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Tony Isabella and Arvell Jones, Knight was first mentioned (by name) in ''Marvel Premiere'' #20 (Jan. 1975) and appeared in ...
: A Harlem NYPD Detective with a strong sense of justice, an ally of Rand and Wing. Missick reprises her role from other Marvel Netflix series.
*
Alice Eve
Alice Sophia Eve (born ) is a British actress. Her movie career includes roles in ''She's Out of My League'', ''Men in Black 3'', ''Star Trek Into Darkness'', and '' Before We Go''. She has had recurring roles on the TV series ''Entourage'' and ...
as
"Typhoid Mary" Walker: A mysterious woman with hidden abilities.
Episodes
Season 1 (2017)
Season 2 (2018)
Production
Development
An ''Iron Fist'' film had been in development at
Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...
since 2000, originally to be co-financed by
Artisan Entertainment
Artisan Entertainment (formerly known as U.S.A. Home Video, International Video Entertainment (IVE) and LIVE Entertainment) was an American film studio and home video company. It was considered one of the largest mini-major film studios until ...
.
Ray Park
Raymond Park (born 23 August 1974) is a Scottish actor and stuntman. He is best known for physically portraying Darth Maul in '' Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace'' and '' Solo: A Star Wars Story'', along with a motion capture performa ...
was hired to star,
but the project went through multiple directors and ultimately did not come to fruition.
Development continued after Marvel Studios began to self-finance their films in the middle of the decade,
with Marvel hiring a group of writers to develop some of their "lesser-known properties", including Iron Fist.
In 2010,
Rich Wilkes
Richard "Rich" Wilkes (born 1966) is an American filmmaker and musician. His work is noted for its rooting in contemporary music and youth culture.
Works As Screenwriter
Wilkes' major-studio debut was as screenwriter of the 1994 film ''Airheads ...
was hired to write a new draft for the film,
and by May 2013, ''Iron Fist'' was said to be one of the "projects on the horizon" for Marvel.
In October 2013, ''
Deadline Hollywood
''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, with ...
'' reported that
Marvel Television
Marvel Television was an American television production company responsible for live-action and animated (through Marvel Animation) television shows and direct-to-DVD series based on characters from Marvel Comics. The division was based at affi ...
was preparing four drama series and a miniseries, totaling 60 episodes, to present to
video on demand
Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos without a traditional video playback device and the constraints of a typical static broadcasting schedule. In the 20th century, broadcasting in the form of o ...
services and cable providers, with
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
,
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...
, and
WGN America
WGN America was an American subscription television network that was owned by the Nexstar Media Group, and was the company's only wholly owned, national cable-originated television channel. The channel in its final form under the WGN branding ra ...
expressing interest.
A few weeks later, Marvel and
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
announced that Marvel Television and
ABC Studios
ABC Signature is an American television Filmmaking#Production, production studio that is a subsidiary of Disney Television Studios, a division of Walt Disney Television, which is part of the List of assets owned by The Walt Disney Company#Disne ...
would provide Netflix with live action series centered around Iron Fist,
Daredevil,
Jessica Jones
Jessica Campbell Jones Cage is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos and first appeared in ''Alias'' #1 (November 2001) ...
, and
Luke Cage
Lucas "Luke" Cage, born Carl Lucas and also known as Power Man, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared in ''Luke Cage, Hero for Hire'' #1 (June 1972) and was created by Archie Go ...
, leading up to a miniseries based on the Defenders.
In April 2015, the official title was revealed to be ''Marvel's Iron Fist''.
That November, Marvel Television head and executive producer
Jeph Loeb
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III () is an American film and television writer, producer and comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series '' Smallville'' and ''Lost'', writer for the films ''Commando'' and ''Teen Wolf'', and a writer and ...
addressed unconfirmed rumors that Marvel was having a difficult time balancing Iron Fist's mystical elements in its grounded world, and that the series could be replaced with a film or a
Punisher
The Punisher (Francis "Frank" Castle, born Castiglione) is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. The Punisher made ...
series. He explained that Marvel and Netflix deliberately held off on ''Iron Fist'' news until ''
Marvel's Jessica Jones
''Marvel's Jessica Jones'' is an American television series created by Melissa Rosenberg for the streaming service Netflix, based on the Marvel Comics character Jessica Jones. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), acknowledging the c ...
'' premiered so that series, revolving around a character largely unknown to the general audience, got the spotlight. Loeb promised that news on a showrunner would be coming,
and Marvel announced that
Scott Buck
Scott Randall Buck is an American television writer. Buck has written for several television series including '' Six Feet Under'', ''Rome'', Showtime's '' Dexter'', ''Everybody Loves Raymond'', ''Coach'', ''Inhumans'', ''The Oblongs'' and '' Iron ...
would serve in the role a month later.
The series was originally intended to be the third of the announced series from Netflix, debuting after ''Jessica Jones'', but was switched with ''
Marvel's Luke Cage
''Marvel's Luke Cage'' is an American television series created by Cheo Hodari Coker for the streaming service Netflix, based on the Marvel Comics character Luke Cage. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), acknowledging the continuit ...
'' after Luke Cage became a breakout star of ''Jessica Jones'' and Marvel wanted to "follow the momentum".
John Dahl
John Dahl (born December 11, 1956) is an American film director, film and television director and screenwriter, writer, best known for his work in the neo-noir genre.
Life and career
John Dahl was born in Billings, Montana, the second of four c ...
, Cindy Holland, Allie Goss, Alison Engel, Kris Henigman,
Alan Fine,
Stan Lee
Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...
,
Joe Quesada
Joseph Quesada (; born January 12, 1962'' Comics Buyer's Guide'' #1650; February 2009; page 107) is an American comic book artist, writer, editor, and television producer. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books ...
,
Dan Buckley
Dan Buckley is an American publishing executive, who is known for his work as Publisher, and then as President of Marvel Entertainment since January 2017.
Early life
Dan Buckley was raised in upstate New York and later a New York city resident. ...
, Jim Chory, Loeb and Buck serve as executive producers on the series.
A second season was announced in July 2017,
with
Raven Metzner
M. Raven Metzner is an American screenwriter and producer.
Career
Raven started his career with the movie '' Elektra'' before moving on to television projects such as ''Clue'', '' Falling Skies'' and '' Sleepy Hollow''. Metzner later replaced ...
announced as the new showrunner for the season, replacing Buck. Loeb felt Metzner's "love of all things Iron Fist and his extensive knowledge of martial arts films made him the perfect choice" for new showrunner.
Writing
Buck stated the series would have a lighter tone to it than the previous Marvel Netflix series, given that "Danny Rand himself is a much lighter character. He's someone that has optimism and hope, and despite whatever the odds are, everything is always going to work out."
On first discovering Rand's powers, Buck described them as "not the greatest superpowers. All he can do is punch really hard ... you can use it in some ways but in rest of his life, it’s not really all that significant. His greatest gift is his martial arts skills, and that’s something he suffered and worked for."
The writers and producers approached "scientists to discuss how someone could potentially have that type of super strength in the real world."
Loeb described the series as "Marvel’s foray into martial arts films", and Buck stated that the comics were just "a starting-off point" for the series, which would be "very grounded
ndcharacter driven".
Jones felt the series was "actually a feminist television show" calling the female characters "incredibly strong, incredibly unique, and they really hold the men up in that world... All the men in our show are falling apart. They need these women to hold them up".
Each episode of the first season is named after
Shaolin Kung Fu
Shaolin Kung Fu (), also called Shaolin Wushu (), or Shaolin quan (), is one of the oldest, largest, and most famous styles of wushu, or kung fu of Chan Buddhism. It combines Ch'an philosophy and martial arts and originated and was developed i ...
sequences,
while each episode title in the second season is named after the issue title of various comics Danny Rand has appeared in.
Casting
Casting for ''Iron Fist'' began by November 2015,
with
Finn Jones
Finn Jones (born Terence Jones; 24 March 1988) is an English actor known for his roles as Loras Tyrell in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2016) and Danny Rand / Iron Fist in the Netflix television shows '' Iron Fist'' (2017–2018), ...
being cast as Danny Rand / Iron Fist in February 2016,
but not officially confirmed by Marvel until March.
On casting Jones, Buck said, "we saw him and I think we all just knew immediately this is our guy... He just seemed to be able to display
he character's youthful optimism and badass attitudewhen needed and sometimes all at once, so he was very capable and flexible as he brought the character to life."
By April,
Jessica Henwick
Jessica Yu-Li Henwick (born 30 August 1992) is a BAFTA nominated English actress, writer and director. She is known for her roles as Nymeria Sand in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' (2015–2017), X-wing pilot Jessika Pava in the film '' S ...
,
David Wenham
David Wenham (born 21 September 1965) is an Australian actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his roles as Faramir in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy, Friar Carl in ''Van Helsing'', Dilios in ''300'' and ...
,
Jessica Stroup
Jessica Leigh Stroup (born October 23, 1986) is an American actress, best known for her role as Erin Silver on '' 90210'' (2008–2013), Max Hardy on ''The Following'' (2014–2015) and Joy Meachum on '' Iron Fist'' (2017–2018), which is set i ...
and
Tom Pelphrey
Thomas J. Pelphrey (born July 28, 1982) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Jonathan Randall and Mick Dante in the CBS television series ''Guiding Light'' and ''As the World Turns'' respectively, Kurt Bunker in the Ci ...
were cast as
Colleen Wing
Colleen Wing is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Descended from a family of samurai, Wing is a Japanese martial artist who avenged her grandfather's death with the help of the superhero Iron Fis ...
,
Harold Meachum,
Joy Meachum, and Ward Meachum, respectively,
and by June,
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan (; born 1 May 1984) is a British actor from Greater Manchester. He is best known for playing Akthar in the play ''The History Boys'' (2004–2006) and its film adaptation (2006), Paul Jatri in the BBC One comedy drama series ''Last ...
had been cast as
Davos
, neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch
, twintowns =
}
Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alpine resort town and a municipality in the Prättigau/Davos R ...
, though he was not revealed to be in the role until March 2017.
In October 2016, it was revealed that
Rosario Dawson
Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent drama ''Kids''. Her subsequent film roles include '' He Got Game'' (1998), ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (2001), ''Men in Bl ...
would reprise her role of
Claire Temple
Claire Temple is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is a medical doctor primarily affiliated with the superhero Luke Cage and is one of his early love interests.
Starting in 2015, a versio ...
from previous Marvel/Netflix series.
Ramón Rodríguez also stars as
Bakuto
''Bakuto'' (博徒) were itinerant gamblers active in Japan from the 18th century to the mid-20th century. They were one of two forerunners (the other being ''tekiya'', or peddlers) to modern Japanese organized crime syndicates called ''yakuza'' ...
.
Jones, Henwick, Pelphrey, Stroup, and Dhawan reprise their roles in the second season.
They are joined by
Simone Missick
Simone Missick (née Cook; born January 19, 1982) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Detective Misty Knight in ''Luke Cage'', a role she also plays in '' The Defenders' ...
as
Misty Knight
Mercedes "Misty" Knight is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Tony Isabella and Arvell Jones, Knight was first mentioned (by name) in ''Marvel Premiere'' #20 (Jan. 1975) and appeared in ...
, reprising her role from previous
Marvel Netflix series,
and
Alice Eve
Alice Sophia Eve (born ) is a British actress. Her movie career includes roles in ''She's Out of My League'', ''Men in Black 3'', ''Star Trek Into Darkness'', and '' Before We Go''. She has had recurring roles on the TV series ''Entourage'' and ...
as
Mary Walker.
Design
Stephanie Maslansky is the costume designer for ''Iron Fist'', after serving the same role for the previous Marvel Netflix series.
Maslansky noted one of the differences in the series compared to the other Marvel Netflix series was the neighborhoods it spent time in ("the wealthier neighborhoods;
Midtown,
Upper East Side
The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 96th Street to the north, the East River to the east, 59th Street to the south, and Central Park/Fifth Avenue to the wes ...
, that sort of thing") compared to
Hell's Kitchen
Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is considered to be bordered by 34th Street (or 41st Street) to the south, 59th Street to the north, Eighth Avenue to the eas ...
for ''Daredevil'' and ''Jessica Jones'' and
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...
for ''Luke Cage''. As such, Rand wears more suits than the other heroes, and given the amount of fighting he does in the series, a lot of spandex was added to increase the suits' flexibility.
The monk costumes and Rand's warrior costume was based on "real
Shaolin warrior monk costumes... I took that distinctive silhouette from the Shaolin warrior monk clothing, and we combined it with the traditional colors of the Iron Fist, green and gold."
The series opening title sequence was created by Elastic.
Filming
Filming for the series takes place in New York City,
in addition to sound stage work.
Manuel Billeter served as director of photography for the first season, after doing the same for seasons of ''Jessica Jones'' and ''Luke Cage'',
and Brett Chan was the series' stunt-coordinator and second unit director in the first season.
The first season was filmed in
high dynamic range
High dynamic range (HDR) is a dynamic range higher than usual, synonyms are wide dynamic range, extended dynamic range, expanded dynamic range.
The term is often used in discussing the dynamic range of various signals such as images, videos, au ...
(HDR), which Billeter stated added "a learning curve" to his work, forcing him to rethink how he would shoot certain scenes.
For the second season, Niels Alpert served as director of photography,
while Clayton Barber took over as the fight coordinator.
Music
In late October 2016,
Trevor Morris was revealed to be composing the music for the first season.
A soundtrack album featuring Morris's score for the
first season was released by Marvel digitally on March 17, 2017, coinciding with the release of the season.
Robert Lydecker composed the score for the second season.
Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins
''Iron Fist'' is the fourth of the ordered Netflix series, after ''
Marvel's Daredevil
''Marvel's Daredevil'' is an American television series created by Drew Goddard for the streaming service Netflix, based on the Marvel Comics character Daredevil. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), acknowledging the continuity of ...
'', ''Jessica Jones'' and ''Luke Cage'', which lead to the miniseries ''The Defenders''.
In November 2013, Disney CEO
Bob Iger
Robert Allen Iger (; born February 10, 1951) is an American businessman who is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Walt Disney Company. He previously served as the President of ABC Television between 1994 and 1995 and the President and Ch ...
stated that if the characters prove popular on Netflix, "It’s quite possible that they could become feature films,"
which Sarandos echoed in July 2015.
In August 2014,
Vincent D'Onofrio
Vincent Philip D'Onofrio (; born June 30, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his supporting and leading roles in both film and television. He has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.
His roles include Private Leonar ...
,
Wilson Fisk
The Kingpin (Wilson Grant Fisk) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and John Romita Sr., and first appeared in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #50 (cover-dated July 19 ...
in ''Daredevil'', stated that after the "series stuff with Netflix", Marvel has "a bigger plan to branch out".
In March 2015, Loeb spoke on the ability for the series to crossover with the
MCU films and the
ABC television series, saying, "It all exists in the same universe. As it is now, in the same way that our films started out as self-contained and then by the time we got to ''
The Avengers'', it became more practical for
Captain America
Captain America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by cartoonists Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character First appearance, first appeared in ''#Golden Age, Captain America Comics'' #1 (cover ...
to do a little crossover into ''
Thor 2'' and for
Bruce Banner
The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of '' The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book a ...
to appear at the end of ''
Iron Man 3
''Iron Man 3'' (titled onscreen as ''Iron Man Three'') is a 2013 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sequel to ''Ir ...
''. We have to earn that. The audience needs to understand who all of these characters are and what the world is before you then start co-mingling in terms of where it's going."
Marketing
Disney Consumer Products
Disney Consumer Products, Inc. is the retailing and licensing subsidiary of the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment of The Walt Disney Company. Previously, Consumer Products was a segment of Disney until 2016, then a unit of Disney Co ...
created a small line of products to cater to a more adult audience, given the show's edgier tone. Paul Gitter, senior VP of Marvel Licensing for Disney Consumer Products, explained the marketing focus would be more on older teens and adults than youth, with products at outlets like
Hot Topic
Hot Topic, Inc. (stylized as HOT TOPIC) is an American retail chain specializing in counterculture-related clothing and accessories, as well as licensed music. The stores are aimed towards an audience interested in rock music and video gaming, ...
. Additionally, a Marvel Knights merchandise program was created to support the series, which creates new opportunities for individual product lines and collector-focused products. Licensing partners wanted to pair up with Marvel, despite this not being a film, given its previous successes.
Release
Streaming
''Iron Fist'' was released on the
streaming service Netflix, in all territories where it is available,
in
Ultra HD
Ultra-high-definition television (also known as Ultra HD television, Ultra HD, UHDTV, UHD and Super Hi-Vision) today includes 4K UHD and 8K UHD, which are two digital video formats with an aspect ratio of 16:9. These were first proposed b ...
4K and HDR.
The episodes for each season were released simultaneously, as opposed to a serialized format, to encourage
binge-watching
Binge-watching (also called binge-viewing) is the practice of watching entertainment or informational content for a prolonged time span, usually a single television show.
Statistics
Binge-watching overlaps with marathon viewing which places mo ...
, a format which has been successful for
other Netflix original series.
Despite being branded as a "Netflix Original", ''Iron Fist'' was licensed to Netflix from Disney.
''Iron Fist'' was removed from Netflix on March 1, 2022, along with the other
Marvel Netflix series, due to Netflix's license for the series ending and Disney regaining the rights.
Disney opted not to have Netflix pay a large licensing fee to retain the distribution rights for the series,
and instead announced that all the series would be made available on
Disney+
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...
on March 16 in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, and in Disney+'s other markets by the end of 2022.
In the United States, revised parental controls were introduced to the service to allow the more mature content of the series to be added, similarly to the controls that already exist for other regions that have the
Star
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...
content hub.
Home media
Reception
Audience viewership
As Netflix does not reveal subscriber viewership numbers for any of their original series, Karim Zreik, senior vice president of original programming at Marvel Television, provided some viewership demographics for ''Iron Fist'' in August 2017, noting that the series has attracted mainly younger viewers.
Also in the month, Netflix released viewing patterns for the Marvel Netflix series. The data, which came from Netflix's "1,300 'taste communities' around the world, where subscribers are grouped based on what they watch", showed that viewers would not watch the series in chronological order by release, rather starting with ''Jessica Jones'', then ''Daredevil'', ''Luke Cage'' and finally ''Iron Fist''. Todd Yellin, Netflix's vice president of product innovation, noted that audiences watch the series "in order of how they're interested in them and how they learn about them." Netflix's data also showed that a viewer watching ''Luke Cage'' would most often then move on to ''Iron Fist'', while other series with "coming-of-tales" such as ''
13 Reasons Why
''13 Reasons Why'' is an American teen drama television series developed for Netflix by Brian Yorkey and based on the 2007 novel ''Thirteen Reasons Why'' by author Jay Asher. The series revolves around high school student Clay Jensen (Dylan Mi ...
'', ''
Love
Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...
'' and ''
The 100 The 100 may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* 100 (DC Comics), fictional organized crime groups appearing in DC Comics
* ''The 100'' (novel series), a 2013–2016 science fiction novel series written by Kass Morgan
* ''The 100'' (TV series), 20 ...
'' led viewers to starting ''Iron Fist''.
In October 2018, Crimson Hexagon, a consumer insights company, released data that examined the "social-media buzz" for the series to try to correlate it with potential viewership. The data showed that when the first season premiered in March 2017, the season had over 120,000 Twitter and Instagram posts regarding it, and when the second season was released in September 2018, the posts had declined dramatically to under 20,000.
Critical response
The review aggregation website
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
reported the first season has a 20% approval rating, based on 85 reviews, with an average rating of 4.2/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Despite some promising moments, ''Iron Fist'' is weighed down by an absence of momentum and originality."
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 37 out of 100 based on reviews from 21 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".
For the second season Rotten Tomatoes reported a 55% approval rating, based on 47 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Better action scenes and tighter pacing elevate ''Iron Fist''s second season, but it remains a lesser light among MCU shows."
On September 7, 2018, Rotten Tomatoes announced that ''Iron Fist'' had the largest increase in approval ratings between the first and second season, increasing 33% at the time.
Metacritic assigned a score of 39 out of 100 based on reviews from six critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".
Accolades
''Iron Fist'' was nominated in the category of Best New Media Superhero Series at the
44th Saturn Awards
The 44th Saturn Awards, presented by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films and honoring the best in science fiction, fantasy, horror, and other genres belonging to genre fiction in film, television, home entertainment and loca ...
.
The series received a nomination for Best Original Score TV Spot/Trailer/Teaser for a Series at the 2019
Golden Trailer Awards
The Golden Trailer Awards are an American annual award show for film trailers founded in 1999. The awards also honor the best work in all areas of film and video game marketing, including posters, television advertisements and other media, in ...
.
Cancellation and future
On October 12, 2018, Netflix canceled the series, despite Marvel wanting to have the series continue on the platform.
Marvel said the characters from the series would "live on" despite the cancellation, and continue to appear in the MCU.
''Deadline Hollywood'' also reported that Disney was considering
reviving the series on its streaming service, Disney+.
However, ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' reported that, per the original deal between Marvel and Netflix for the series, the characters cannot appear in any non-Netflix series or films for at least two years following the cancellation of ''Iron Fist''.
Kevin A. Mayer
Kevin A. Mayer (born 1962) is an American business executive who is the co-founder and co-CEO of Candle Media, alongside Thomas O. Staggs, the former COO and CFO of The Walt Disney Company. Backed by Blackstone Inc., Candle Media acquired Hello ...
, chairman of
Walt Disney Direct-to-Consumer and International, noted that, while it had not yet been discussed, it was a possibility that Disney+ could revive the series.
In February 2019,
Hulu
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
's senior vice president of originals Craig Erwich said that the streaming service was open to reviving the series, along with the other former Netflix series.
Jones and Metzner had both believed a third season would be ordered and had planned the storyline for it, with Jones feeling the season had a lot of promise. Jones said it would have featured Rand and Meachum traveling the world in a
buddy
Buddy may refer to:
People
*Buddy (nickname)
*Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present)
*Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992)
*Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Amer ...
story, with Rand "fully charged up (and) fully in control", and finally assuming the role of Iron Fist. Wing, remaining in New York, would have been struggling to come to terms with her identity and newfound power before reuniting with Rand and becoming a couple.
In December 2021, Henwick revealed that she was offered the role of
Xialing in the
Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...
film ''
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
''Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings'' is a 2021 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the character Shang-Chi. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 25th film ...
'' (2021), but turned it down because she wanted to reprise the role of Wing in a future MCU production.
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Portal bar, Television, United States, Speculative fiction, Comics
2010s American drama television series
2010s American mystery television series
2017 American television series debuts
2018 American television series endings
American action television series
Dissociative identity disorder in television
English-language Netflix original programming
Fictional Buddhist monks
Martial arts television series
Serial drama television series
Television series by ABC Studios
Television shows based on Marvel Comics
Television shows based on works by Roy Thomas
Television shows filmed in New York City
Television shows set in China
Television shows set in New York City