''Marvel's The Defenders'' is an American television
miniseries
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...
created by
Douglas Petrie
Douglas Petrie is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Best known as a writer, director, and co-executive producer on '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. He co-wrote the screenplays for the '' Fantastic Four'' film and ''Harriet the Sp ...
and Marco Ramirez 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 ...
characters
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
,
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) ...
,
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 ...
, and
Iron Fist, who form the
eponymous superhero team. 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) and acknowledges the continuity of
the franchise's films. The miniseries is a
crossover event
A crossover is the placement of two or more otherwise discrete fictional characters, settings, or universes into the context of a single story. They can arise from legal agreements between the relevant copyright holders, unofficial efforts by ...
and the culmination for four previously released
interconnected series from Marvel and Netflix. It 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 affil ...
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 ...
, Nine and a Half Fingers, Inc., and Goddard Textiles, with Ramirez 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 ...
.
The series stars
Charlie Cox
Charlie Thomas Cox (born 15 December 1982) is an English actor. He is known for portraying Matt Murdock / Daredevil in several projects of the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise, including lead roles in the television series '' Daredevil'' (20 ...
as
Matt Murdock / Daredevil
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 ...
,
Krysten Ritter
Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series '' Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She the ...
as
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) ...
,
Mike Colter
Mike Randal Colter (born August 26, 1976) is an American actor best known for his role as Luke Cage in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in the streaming television series ''Luke Cage'' (2016–2018), '' The Defenders'' (2017), and ''Jess ...
as
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 ...
, and
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 journalis ...
, all reprising their roles from their individual series. It also stars
Eka Darville
Eka Darville (born 11 April 1989) is an Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as Scott Truman in ''Power Rangers RPM,'' Pip in ''Mr. Pip'', Malcolm Ducasse in ''Jessica Jones'' and Diego in '' The Originals''.
Biography Early life ...
,
Elden Henson
Elden Henson (born Elden Ryan Ratliff, August 30, 1977) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Fulton Reed in ''The Mighty Ducks'' trilogy (1992–1996), Foggy Nelson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) streaming television series ' ...
,
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 '' Sta ...
,
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' ...
,
Ramón Rodríguez,
Rachael Taylor
Rachael May Taylor (born 11 July 1984) is an Australian actress and model. Her first lead role was in the Australian series ''headLand'' (2005–2006). She then made the transition to Hollywood, appearing in films including ''Man-Thing'' (2005 ...
,
Deborah Ann Woll
Deborah Ann Woll (born February 7, 1985) is an American actress and model. Woll played Jessica Hamby in the HBO drama series ''True Blood'' (2008–2014), which earned her a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award. She subsequently starred as ...
,
Élodie Yung
Élodie Yung (; born 22 February 1981) is a French actress. She is best known for her role as Elektra Natchios in the 2016 second season of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Netflix series '' Daredevil'' and the 2017 Netflix miniseries '' The De ...
,
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
Scott Glenn
Theodore Scott Glenn (born January 26) is an American actor. His roles have included Pfc Glenn Kelly in ''Nashville'' (1975), Wes Hightower in ''Urban Cowboy'' (1980), astronaut Alan Shepard in '' The Right Stuff'' (1983), Emmett in '' Silverado'' ...
, all also returning from previous series, as well as
Sigourney Weaver
Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gram ...
. Development began in late 2013, with Cox the first actor cast in May 2014. Petrie and Ramirez joined as showrunners in April, after doing so for the
second season of ''
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
''. Petrie left with the start of filming, which took place in New York City from October 2016 to March 2017. Cinematography and design work established the different color palettes from the characters' individual series, and combined them as the team is formed.
''The Defenders'' premiered in New York on July 31, 2017, with all eight episodes released on Netflix on August 18. Critics were mostly positive about the crossover, highlighting the dynamics between the different Defenders as well as Weaver's performance, but were generally disappointed with the overall story, pacing, and the use of
the Hand as villains. Third-party analysis indicated that the miniseries was the least-viewed Marvel Netflix series so far and had the largest week-over-week drop in viewership of them all, though it was the third-most "
Binge
Binge or Binges may refer to:
Behavior
Binge, a behavior engaged in excessively over a short period of time, such as:
* Binge drinking
* Binge eating
* Binge-watching
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Binge'' (EP), a 2018 EP by Machine Gun Kell ...
Raced" series globally at the time of its release, according to Netflix. It received several award nominations. ''The Defenders'', along with the other Marvel Netflix series, was removed from Netflix on March 1, 2022, after Disney regained the license for the series. 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
Set a few months after the
second season of ''
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
'',
and a month after the
first season of ''
Iron Fist'',
the vigilantes
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
,
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) ...
,
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 ...
, and
Iron Fist team up in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
to fight a common enemy,
the Hand.
Cast and characters
Main
*
Charlie Cox
Charlie Thomas Cox (born 15 December 1982) is an English actor. He is known for portraying Matt Murdock / Daredevil in several projects of the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise, including lead roles in the television series '' Daredevil'' (20 ...
as
Matt Murdock / Daredevil
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 ...
:
A blind pro-bono lawyer in
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 ...
, with his remaining senses enhanced, who is secretly a vigilante.
Cox felt the
second season of ''
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
'', in which Murdock fought alongside
Elektra Natchios
Elektra Natchios (, ) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Frank Miller, the character first appeared in '' Daredevil'' #168 (Jan. 1981). She is a love interest of the superhero Matt Mur ...
and
Frank Castle
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 ma ...
, prepared the character to accept help in ''The Defenders'',
and that moving into the miniseries the death of Natchios would be weighing heavily on Murdock.
Ramirez likened Murdock and Natchios' relationship to a more overtly sexual version of
Edward Norton
Edward Harrison Norton (born August 18, 1969) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received numerous awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe Award and three Academy Award nominations.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts and raised ...
and
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. ...
's characters in ''
Fight Club
''Fight Club'' is a 1999 American film directed by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, and Helena Bonham Carter. It is based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Chuck Palahniuk. Norton plays the unnamed narrator, who is d ...
'' (1999), with Natchios being Murdock's "burden to deal with" after she is resurrected.
Cox felt that Murdock and Jessica Jones would have a "fiery relationship" in the series since both characters are "quite opinionated and quite stubborn".
*
Krysten Ritter
Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series '' Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She the ...
as
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) ...
:
A
private investigator
A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...
suffering from
post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on ...
who runs her own agency, Alias Investigations.
Ritter felt it would be interesting to see what forces Jones to team up with the other heroes, since she is against being a superhero and "doesn't want anything to do with that."
She added that at the start of the series, Jones is still dealing with the aftermath of killing
Kilgrave at the end of the
first season of ''
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 has not adjusted to the increase in the number of people wanting to hire her since then. Showrunner Marco Ramirez noted that Jones would struggle with letting "three men into her life who she doesn't 100 percent trust". Ritter said that Jones and Murdock would have a "
cat and mouse
Cat and mouse, often expressed as cat-and-mouse game, is an English-language idiom that means "a contrived action involving constant pursuit, near captures, and repeated escapes." The "cat" is unable to secure a definitive victory over the "mouse ...
" dynamic.
*
Mike Colter
Mike Randal Colter (born August 26, 1976) is an American actor best known for his role as Luke Cage in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in the streaming television series ''Luke Cage'' (2016–2018), '' The Defenders'' (2017), and ''Jess ...
as
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 ...
:
A former convict with superhuman strength and unbreakable skin who now fights crime in
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), ...
.
Colter felt that none of the Defenders seemed like they would want to be in a superhero group together, and said that Cage specifically is "in his own world".
He added that Cage's imprisonment at the end of the
first season of ''
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 ...
'' would be dealt with at the beginning of the miniseries, taking away a "big burden to bear ... Now that that's out of the way, I think we can give him a different approach to life." Colter said Cage would act as "the conciliator" for the group as well as a mentor to Danny Rand; pairing Rand with Cage is a homage to the ''
Heroes for Hire
Heroes for Hire are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team first appeared in ''Power Man and Iron Fist'' #54 (December 1978), and was created by Ed Hannigan and Lee Elias. The team continued to appe ...
'' comics, which Colter thought was cool and had a "wisdom-versus-youth quality".
*
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 journalis ...
:
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, co-CEO of Rand Enterprises, and martial arts expert with the ability to call upon the mystical power of the Iron Fist.
Jones said Rand is the driving force of the group as he "knows how serious this situation is".
Jones felt the combination of the
first season of ''
Iron Fist'' and ''The Defenders'' formed "the complete first season of Danny's journey", with the latter seeing him become untrusting due to the events of the former.
Rand is influenced by the other Defenders, who are older than him and are examples of heroes who "manage to keep their shit together".
In particular, Colter said Rand has "an exuberance ... that Luke Cage wants to temper a bit".
Rand is picked on by the other Defenders, which some viewers saw as an acknowledgment of the poor reception that the first season of ''Iron Fist'' received. However, Ramirez said that season had not been released when they were making ''The Defenders'', and that dynamic was how they naturally felt his character would be treated.
*
Eka Darville
Eka Darville (born 11 April 1989) is an Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as Scott Truman in ''Power Rangers RPM,'' Pip in ''Mr. Pip'', Malcolm Ducasse in ''Jessica Jones'' and Diego in '' The Originals''.
Biography Early life ...
as
Malcolm Ducasse
Karen Page
Paibok
Doctor Paine
Doctor Paine are two fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Thaddeus Paine
Dr. Thaddeus Paine, created by Len Kaminski, first appeared in ''Morbius the Living Vampir ...
: Jones' neighbor and assistant at Alias Investigations.
*
Elden Henson
Elden Henson (born Elden Ryan Ratliff, August 30, 1977) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Fulton Reed in ''The Mighty Ducks'' trilogy (1992–1996), Foggy Nelson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) streaming television series ' ...
as
Franklin "Foggy" Nelson: Murdock's close friend and former law partner who now works with
Jeri Hogarth
Jeryn "Jeri" Hogarth is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a friend of Iron Fist (comics), Iron Fist's father Wendell and an attorney for the Heroes for Hire, a team of heroes of which Iron ...
.
*
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 '' Sta ...
as
Colleen Wing
Colleen Wing is a fictional Character (arts), 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 s ...
: A former member of
the Hand, Rand's lover, and the owner of a New York City dojo.
*
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 police detective part of a citywide task force who is Cage's ally.
*
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''. ...
: One of the five "fingers" of the Hand, and Wing's former sensei.
*
Rachael Taylor
Rachael May Taylor (born 11 July 1984) is an Australian actress and model. Her first lead role was in the Australian series ''headLand'' (2005–2006). She then made the transition to Hollywood, appearing in films including ''Man-Thing'' (2005 ...
as
Trish Walker
''Jessica Jones'' is an American streaming television series created for Netflix by Melissa Rosenberg, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films of ...
: Jones' adoptive sister and best friend who hosts her own radio talk show.
*
Deborah Ann Woll
Deborah Ann Woll (born February 7, 1985) is an American actress and model. Woll played Jessica Hamby in the HBO drama series ''True Blood'' (2008–2014), which earned her a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award. She subsequently starred as ...
as
Karen Page
Karen Page is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She serves as the original love interest for Daredevil, under Matt Murdock's employ as his legal secretary. In 1999, Page was killed by Bullseye, a ...
: Murdock's close friend and former secretary, and a burgeoning newspaper reporter.
*
Élodie Yung
Élodie Yung (; born 22 February 1981) is a French actress. She is best known for her role as Elektra Natchios in the 2016 second season of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Netflix series '' Daredevil'' and the 2017 Netflix miniseries '' The De ...
as
Elektra Natchios
Elektra Natchios (, ) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Frank Miller, the character first appeared in '' Daredevil'' #168 (Jan. 1981). She is a love interest of the superhero Matt Mur ...
:
A mysterious and dangerous woman from Murdock's past, who is the Black Sky, a weapon of the Hand.
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 ...
had wanted to adapt the storyline featuring Natchios' resurrection from the comics, and Ramirez felt that it should happen in ''The Defenders'' after the writers of ''Daredevil'' came to the "organic" decision to kill the character at the end of that series' second season.
Yung called Natchios "an amnesiac
hodoesn't remember who she is or anything about her past life", with the question being how much of the original character remains following Alexandra's training.
Sigourney Weaver
Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gram ...
, who portrays Alexandra, described the characters' relationship as "unusual".
*
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 who gives medical aid to vigilantes, and is Cage’s lover.
*
Scott Glenn
Theodore Scott Glenn (born January 26) is an American actor. His roles have included Pfc Glenn Kelly in ''Nashville'' (1975), Wes Hightower in ''Urban Cowboy'' (1980), astronaut Alan Shepard in '' The Right Stuff'' (1983), Emmett in '' Silverado'' ...
as
Stick
Stick or the stick may refer to:
Thin elongated objects
* Twig
* The weapon used in stick fighting
* Walking stick, a device to facilitate balancing while walking
* Shepherd's crook
* Swagger stick
* Digging stick
* Swizzle stick, used to stir d ...
: Murdock's mentor and leader of
the Chaste
The Chaste is a fictional heroic mystical martial arts enclave appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The organization was depicted as being led by Stick, who was created by Frank Miller in the pages of '' Daredevil''.
The ...
who wages a war against the Hand.
*
Sigourney Weaver
Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gram ...
as Alexandra:
One of the five "fingers" of the Hand and its leader.
Weaver called the character "really smart", "very in charge",
and more of an adversary than a villain.
Ramirez described her as "a survivor" and "a very powerful force in New York City",
adding, "She's everything Sigourney is: sophisticated, intellectual, dangerous"; the antagonist of the series had to be "something massive to pull these four
ero
''Ero'' is a genus of pirate spiders first described in 1836. They resemble comb-footed spiders due to their globular abdomen, which is higher than it is long.
Description
The upper side of their abdomen bears one or two pairs of conical tu ...
characters from their individual worlds to work together".
Alexandra is "charmed" by the four heroes teaming up against her, having "never met four people who are seemingly just interested in taking care of this one little part of New York ... they're unlike anybody she's ever faced off against before". Weaver worked with the writers to avoid a cliché portrayal, specifically "terms like 'ice queen' that are often thrown at women who aren't completely sympathetic".
It was important to Ramirez and Weaver to introduce Alexandra sympathetically.
The character is ultimately a supporting player for Natchios' overall story, with Ramirez saying that the writers were able to create a "really fun cool character" for Weaver to portray, but they did so in service of Natchios and the journey that she goes on.
Recurring
*
Wai Ching Ho
Wai Ching Ho (born 16 November 1943) is a Hong Kong film and television actress.
She is known for her role as Madame Gao in the Marvel Cinematic Universe onscreen, in ''Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media ...
as Gao: One of the five "fingers" of the Hand.
*
J. Mallory McCree as Cole Miller: A young man from Harlem who gets involved with the Hand.
*
Michelle Federer
Michelle Lin Federer is an American actress.
Early life and education
Federer is the daughter of John and Claudia Federer. She grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio,Stevens, Beth"Fresh Face Michelle Federer"broadway.com, January 2, 2004 where she was ...
as Michelle Raymond: A woman who approaches Jones about her missing husband.
*
Chloe Levine
Chloe (; ), also spelled Chloë, Chlöe, or Chloé, is a feminine name meaning "blooming" or "fertility" in Greek. The name ultimately derives, through Greek, from the Proto-Indo-European root ', which relates to the colors yellow and green. T ...
as Lexi Raymond: The daughter of John and Michelle Raymond.
*
Babs Olusanmokun
Babs Olusanmokun (born September 18, 1984) is a Nigerian-American actor. In 2017, he appeared in "Black Museum", an episode of the anthology series ''Black Mirror''. He also appeared in the video game ''Max Payne 3'' as Serrano, for which he pr ...
as Sowande: One of the five "fingers" of the Hand, who hires Harlem teenagers.
*
Ron Simons
Ron Simons is an American actor and producer, and a four-time Tony Award winner.
Career
Simons has degrees in theater and computer science from Columbia University, and didn't go to drama school until he was 39. He also received a degree from C ...
as Strieber: Knight's police captain.
* Yutaka Takeuchi as Murakami: One of the five "fingers" of the Hand.
Guest
*
Peter McRobbie
Peter McRobbie (born 31 January 1943) is a Scottish-born American character actor, best known for his roles as John C. Twist in the 2005 romantic drama film ''Brokeback Mountain'', Mike Sheenan in the 2006 action film '' 16 Blocks'', Pop Pop Ja ...
as Paul Lantom: A Catholic priest and confidante for Murdock.
*
Debbi Morgan
Deborah Ann Morgan (born September 20, 1956) is an American film and television actress. She played the role of Angie Baxter–Hubbard on the ABC soap opera ''All My Children'' for which she was the first African-American to win the Daytime Emm ...
as Delores Miller: Cole's mother.
*
Marko Zaror
Marko Zaror Aguad (born June 10, 1978) is a Chilean martial artist and actor.
Zaror was born in Santiago, Chile, and lives in Los Angeles, California. He started training in martial arts when he was six years old. His main sports are taekwondo ...
as
Shaft
Shaft may refer to:
Rotating machine elements
* Shaft (mechanical engineering), a rotating machine element used to transmit power
* Line shaft, a power transmission system
* Drive shaft, a shaft for transferring torque
* Axle, a shaft around whi ...
: A member of the Chaste.
*
Carrie-Anne Moss
Carrie-Anne Moss (born August 21, 1967) is a Canadian actress. After early roles on television, she rose to international prominence for her role of Trinity in ''The Matrix'' series (1999–present). She has starred in '' Memento'' (2000) for w ...
as
Jeri Hogarth
Jeryn "Jeri" Hogarth is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a friend of Iron Fist (comics), Iron Fist's father Wendell and an attorney for the Heroes for Hire, a team of heroes of which Iron ...
: A lawyer and ally of Jones and Rand.
*
Rob Morgan as
Turk Barrett
Turk Barrett is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted in stories featuring Daredevil, in which his inept schemes are played as comic relief.
Barrett was a recurring ...
: A low-level criminal who crosses paths with Daredevil and Luke Cage.
*
Amy Rutberg
Amy Lauren Ruth Rutberg (born November 11, 1981) is an American actress. She is known for her role as Marci Stahl in ''Daredevil''.
Early life
Born in Los Angeles, Rutberg became interested in acting at a young age after watching a production of ...
as Marci Stahl: Nelson's girlfriend and fellow lawyer.
* Susan Varon as Josie: Owner of a bar frequented by Nelson and Murdock.
* Alex Moggridge as John Raymond: An architect who gets involved with the Hand, and is investigated by Jones and Murdock.
* Nichole Yannetty as Nicole: An intern at Walker's talk show.
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 ...
makes a cameo appearance through an on-set photograph as
NYPD
The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...
Captain
Irving Forbush, the same photograph seen in previous Marvel Netflix series.
The Aeolus Quartet also cameo as themselves, performing
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...
'
First String Quartet for Alexandra.
Episodes
Production
Development
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 affil ...
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 ran ...
expressing interest.
A few weeks later, it was 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
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
,
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) ...
,
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 ...
, and
Iron Fist, leading up to a miniseries based on the
Defenders
Defender(s) or The Defender(s) may refer to:
*Defense (military)
*Defense (sports)
**Defender (association football)
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''The Defender'' (1989 film), a Canadian documentary
* ''The Defender'' (1994 f ...
.
In November 2015, Marvel Comics'
editor-in-chief
An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies.
The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...
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 ...
stated there was no apprehension from Marvel in changing the line up of the Defenders from the "classic" original line-up (
Doctor Strange
Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #110 (cover-dated July 1963). Doctor Strange serves as Sorce ...
,
Hulk
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 (comic book), The Incredible Hulk' ...
,
Namor
Namor (), also known as the Sub-Mariner, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Debuting in early 1939, the character was created by writer-artist Bill Everett for comic book packager Funnies Inc. ...
and
Silver Surfer
The Silver Surfer is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character also appears in a number of movies, television, and video game adaptations. The character was created by Jack Kirby and first a ...
) because "to the world at large, no one knows who the Defenders are. So the idea of taking the concept and name and applying it to [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)] feels wholly natural" adding there was "a wonderful concept" behind why the group would form in the MCU and why they would be called the Defenders.
In April 2016, it was announced that
Douglas Petrie
Douglas Petrie is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Best known as a writer, director, and co-executive producer on '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. He co-wrote the screenplays for the '' Fantastic Four'' film and ''Harriet the Sp ...
and Marco Ramirez, the showrunners for the
second season of ''
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
'', would serve as showrunners and executive producers on ''Marvel's The Defenders''. ''Daredevil'' creator
Drew Goddard
Andrew Brion Hogan Goddard (born February 26, 1975) is an American filmmaker. He began his career writing episodes for the television shows ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', ''Angel'', ''Alias'', and ''Lost''. After moving into screenwriting in fi ...
also serves as an executive producer on the miniseries,
along with Karim Zreik, 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 ...
, Jim Chory, and Marvel Television head
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 ...
.
S. J. Clarkson
S. J. Clarkson is a British television and film director.
Career
Clarkson's credits include the series '' Doctors'', ''Casualty'', '' EastEnders'', ''Footballers' Wives'', and ''Life on Mars'', as well as the American series ''Heroes'', '' House' ...
, director of the miniseries' first two episodes, also serves as an executive producer on the first episode.
In July 2016, Loeb confirmed that the miniseries would consist of eight episodes, and stated that Petrie and Ramirez would consult with
Melissa Rosenberg
Melissa Anne Rosenberg is an American television writer, television producer, and screenwriter. She has worked in both film and television and has won a Peabody Award. She has also been nominated for two Emmy Awards, and two Writers Guild of A ...
,
Cheo Hodari Coker
Cheo Hodari Coker (born December 12, 1972) is an American former music journalist turned television writer and producer known for such television series as ''Luke Cage (TV series), Luke Cage'', ''NCIS: Los Angeles'', ''Southland (TV series), Sout ...
, and
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 ...
—the showrunners of ''
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) ...
'', ''
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 ...
'', and ''
Iron Fist'', respectively—on how their characters would act;
the other showrunners read each of the scripts for ''The Defenders'' and provided insight into each individual character's world.
On this collaboration, Petrie said of Rosenberg specifically that she was "wonderful because she's in this position of being a fellow artist and letting us do what we do, but at the same time loving her character and being protective of her character and wanting us to get it right". Rosenberg said that she and the other showrunners "felt really included in the process".
Loeb compared this relationship to
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill Whedon (; born June 23, 1964) is an American filmmaker, composer, and comic book writer. He is the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions, co-founder of Bellwether Pictures, and is best known as the creator of several television series: ...
consulting with the filmmakers of the MCU's
Phase One films before directing the crossover film ''
The Avengers
Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to:
Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe
* Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes
** Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes o ...
'' (2012).
At the start of filming in October 2016, Petrie left the series as co-showrunner. Loeb explained, "We got to a point where the scripts were done, and we wanted Marco to continue, and Doug pursued other avenues."
Writing
By late May 2016, Petrie and Ramirez had turned in a completed story for the miniseries,
based on a "very bare-bones structure" from Loeb.
Petrie and Ramirez went through a "trapeze act" to have the story work for viewers who had not seen the previous series, while also not have redundant moments of exposition for those who had.
Petrie said the miniseries would be a "detour" for the characters, allowing them to return to the worlds of their own series at the end,
making it equivalent to ''Daredevil'' season 2.5, ''Luke Cage'' season 1.5, ''Jessica Jones'' season 1.5, and ''Iron Fist'' season 1.5.
Loeb compared the miniseries to the
Olympics
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
, where "you get to know all of these athletes in their various sports
nd thenthey're going to get together",
while Coker further compared it to the forming of the
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
or
Voltron
''Voltron'' is an Animation, animated television series franchise that features a team of space explorers who pilot a giant Super Robot known as "Voltron". Produced by Peter Keefe (Executive Producer) and Ted Koplar through his production compa ...
.
Ramirez and Petrie wanted the project to feel earned, grounded, and topical like the individual series, rather than "a corporate mandate".
Goddard noted that each of the individual series have different tones, and combining them for the miniseries created a different one.
Finding this new tone was the most challenging aspect of the project for Ramirez.
Scenes in the early episodes were created to feel like the "most optimal versions" of each individual series, using visual and sonic elements from each that are slowly combined as the miniseries goes on.
Loeb cautioned against the "easy comparison" to ''The Avengers'', noting that lessons would be taken from that crossover such as how that team did not come together right away,
but unlike the
Avengers
Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to:
Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe
* Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes
**Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes of ...
in the film, the Defenders do not operate out of one location such as
Avengers Tower
The Stark Tower Complex is a fictional high-rise building complex appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, USA, the complex is named after its owner Tony Stark, who is the alter ego ...
or have matching costumes.
''
The Dirty Dozen
''The Dirty Dozen'' is a 1967 American war film directed by Robert Aldrich and starring Lee Marvin with an ensemble supporting cast including Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jim Brown, John Cassavetes, Richard Jaeckel, George Kennedy, Ralph M ...
'' (1967), ''
Seven Samurai
is a 1954 Japanese epic samurai drama film co-written, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa. The story takes place in 1586 during the Sengoku period of Japanese history. It follows the story of a village of desperate farmers who hire seven ...
'' (1954), and other films "where characters came together who did not want to come together" were bigger influences on the project than ''The Avengers''.
Choosing an antagonist for the miniseries was another challenge, according to Ramirez.
Loeb did not want a villain like the aliens from ''The Avengers'' because these are "street level heroes
hocome from a very real place",
but each of the Defenders has been shown to be "really powerful" in their individual series and the antagonist would have to prove a challenge for the four of them together.
Ramirez also felt that the antagonist should be a common denominator rather than having individual villains combining from each series. They settled on the overarching organization of the Hand,
and have the characters following individual investigations that lead them to converge on the same location.
It was subsequently important to Ramirez that the Hand be destroyed by the end of the miniseries, to give it a definitive ending and to allow the individual characters, especially Iron Fist, to move on to new stories and adversaries.
To give something unexpected to the audience, the focus of the story is ultimately revealed to be Elektra Natchios, and her journey of rejecting the people in her life who have told her what to do. This includes her mentor Stick and the miniseries' apparent central antagonist Alexandra, whom she both murders, as well as Daredevil. Ramirez said that the theme of "having to embrace the identity you want" also applies to the four Defenders. He added that Elektra murdering Alexandra made more sense than one of the Defenders doing it, as the writers felt that none of the Defenders were murderous and would have to be pushed into doing it.
Regarding where the miniseries leaves the Defenders, Ramirez compared their relationship to "people who were on the same bus when it got in an accident ... it's kind of like, 'This was a great adventure to have with you, I'd be okay with seeing you again, I'd also be okay with never seeing you again.
The final image of ''The Defenders'', in which Murdock wakes up with a nun by his side, is an homage to a panel from the ''
Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media Comics
* Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro
* Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superher ...
'' story arc "
Born Again
Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...
" (1986). The nun calling for "Maggie" is an implied reference to
Murdock's mother,
which Ramirez would not confirm at the time of miniseries' release. He did note that this scene along with several others from Daredevil's story in the miniseries was a direct homage to the comics, and that this panel from "Born Again" was one of his favorite Daredevil panels.
Ramirez explained that the scene was included because a
third season of ''Daredevil'' had already been announced, and they did not want to make the audience think they "were trying to cheat them or convince them of something that's not happening".
Casting
At the end of May 2014,
Charlie Cox
Charlie Thomas Cox (born 15 December 1982) is an English actor. He is known for portraying Matt Murdock / Daredevil in several projects of the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise, including lead roles in the television series '' Daredevil'' (20 ...
was cast as Daredevil for ''Daredevil''.
In December 2014,
Krysten Ritter
Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series '' Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She the ...
was cast as Jessica Jones and
Mike Colter
Mike Randal Colter (born August 26, 1976) is an American actor best known for his role as Luke Cage in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in the streaming television series ''Luke Cage'' (2016–2018), '' The Defenders'' (2017), and ''Jess ...
was cast as Luke Cage for ''Jessica Jones'',
with Colter also headlining ''Luke Cage''.
In February 2016,
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), ...
was reported to be cast as Danny Rand for ''Iron Fist'',
being confirmed the following month. They also confirmed that Cox, Ritter, Colter, and Jones would all reprise their roles to star in ''The Defenders''.
In March 2016,
Élodie Yung
Élodie Yung (; born 22 February 1981) is a French actress. She is best known for her role as Elektra Natchios in the 2016 second season of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Netflix series '' Daredevil'' and the 2017 Netflix miniseries '' The De ...
, who portrays
Elektra Natchios
Elektra Natchios (, ) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Frank Miller, the character first appeared in '' Daredevil'' #168 (Jan. 1981). She is a love interest of the superhero Matt Mur ...
in ''Daredevil'', expressed interest in appearing in ''The Defenders'' as an antagonist,
and
Eka Darville
Eka Darville (born 11 April 1989) is an Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as Scott Truman in ''Power Rangers RPM,'' Pip in ''Mr. Pip'', Malcolm Ducasse in ''Jessica Jones'' and Diego in '' The Originals''.
Biography Early life ...
said a month later that he would reprise his ''Jessica Jones'' role of
Malcolm Ducasse
Karen Page
Paibok
Doctor Paine
Doctor Paine are two fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Thaddeus Paine
Dr. Thaddeus Paine, created by Len Kaminski, first appeared in ''Morbius the Living Vampir ...
in ''The Defenders''.
In September,
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' ...
said she would be reprising the role of
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 ...
from ''Luke Cage'' in the miniseries.
After production began in October, it was confirmed that Darville, Missick, and Yung would appear,
alongside ''Daredevil'' actors
Deborah Ann Woll
Deborah Ann Woll (born February 7, 1985) is an American actress and model. Woll played Jessica Hamby in the HBO drama series ''True Blood'' (2008–2014), which earned her a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award. She subsequently starred as ...
as
Karen Page
Karen Page is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She serves as the original love interest for Daredevil, under Matt Murdock's employ as his legal secretary. In 1999, Page was killed by Bullseye, a ...
,
Elden Henson
Elden Henson (born Elden Ryan Ratliff, August 30, 1977) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Fulton Reed in ''The Mighty Ducks'' trilogy (1992–1996), Foggy Nelson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) streaming television series ' ...
as
Foggy Nelson
Franklin Percy "Foggy" Nelson is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been depicted as part of the supporting cast of Daredevil (Matt Murdock); Foggy is Matt's best friend and, for ...
,
and
Scott Glenn
Theodore Scott Glenn (born January 26) is an American actor. His roles have included Pfc Glenn Kelly in ''Nashville'' (1975), Wes Hightower in ''Urban Cowboy'' (1980), astronaut Alan Shepard in '' The Right Stuff'' (1983), Emmett in '' Silverado'' ...
as
Stick
Stick or the stick may refer to:
Thin elongated objects
* Twig
* The weapon used in stick fighting
* Walking stick, a device to facilitate balancing while walking
* Shepherd's crook
* Swagger stick
* Digging stick
* Swizzle stick, used to stir d ...
;
''Jessica Jones''s
Rachael Taylor
Rachael May Taylor (born 11 July 1984) is an Australian actress and model. Her first lead role was in the Australian series ''headLand'' (2005–2006). She then made the transition to Hollywood, appearing in films including ''Man-Thing'' (2005 ...
as
Trish Walker
''Jessica Jones'' is an American streaming television series created for Netflix by Melissa Rosenberg, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films of ...
;
and ''Iron Fist''s
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 '' Sta ...
as
Colleen Wing
Colleen Wing is a fictional Character (arts), 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 s ...
.
Ramón Rodríguez also reprises his ''Iron Fist'' role 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''. ...
,
while
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 ...
returns 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 ...
from all of the previous Marvel Netflix series.
At
New York Comic Con
The New York Comic Con is an annual New York City fan convention dedicated to Western comics, graphic novels, anime, manga, video games, cosplay, toys, movies, and television. It was first held in 2006.
History
The New York Comic Con is a f ...
in October,
Sigourney Weaver
Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gram ...
was announced to be playing the main antagonist of the miniseries,
later revealed to be Alexandra.
The producers had referred to the character as "a Sigourney Weaver type" for four months before Loeb contacted her about the project.
Additionally, J. Mallory McCree recurs as Cole;
Michelle Federer
Michelle Lin Federer is an American actress.
Early life and education
Federer is the daughter of John and Claudia Federer. She grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio,Stevens, Beth"Fresh Face Michelle Federer"broadway.com, January 2, 2004 where she was ...
and Chloe Levine portray Michelle and Lexi Raymond;
and
Ron Simons
Ron Simons is an American actor and producer, and a four-time Tony Award winner.
Career
Simons has degrees in theater and computer science from Columbia University, and didn't go to drama school until he was 39. He also received a degree from C ...
appears as police captain Strieber.
Babs Olusanmokun and Yutaka Takeuchi portray Sowande and Murakami, respectively, both being leaders of the Hand.
Other actors reprising their roles for the miniseries include ''Daredevil''s
Wai Ching Ho
Wai Ching Ho (born 16 November 1943) is a Hong Kong film and television actress.
She is known for her role as Madame Gao in the Marvel Cinematic Universe onscreen, in ''Daredevil
Daredevil may refer to:
* A stunt performer
Arts and media ...
as Madame Gao,
Peter McRobbie
Peter McRobbie (born 31 January 1943) is a Scottish-born American character actor, best known for his roles as John C. Twist in the 2005 romantic drama film ''Brokeback Mountain'', Mike Sheenan in the 2006 action film '' 16 Blocks'', Pop Pop Ja ...
as Father
Lantom,
Amy Rutberg as Marci Stahl,
and Susan Varon as Josie;
''Jessica Jones''
Carrie-Anne Moss
Carrie-Anne Moss (born August 21, 1967) is a Canadian actress. After early roles on television, she rose to international prominence for her role of Trinity in ''The Matrix'' series (1999–present). She has starred in '' Memento'' (2000) for w ...
as
Jeri Hogarth
Jeryn "Jeri" Hogarth is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a friend of Iron Fist (comics), Iron Fist's father Wendell and an attorney for the Heroes for Hire, a team of heroes of which Iron ...
and Nichole Yannetty as Nicole;
and
Rob Morgan as
Turk Barrett
Turk Barrett is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted in stories featuring Daredevil, in which his inept schemes are played as comic relief.
Barrett was a recurring ...
, from previous Marvel Netflix series.
Design
Director S. J. Clarkson, cinematographer Matthew J. Lloyd, production designer Loren Weeks, and costume designer Stephanie Maslansky worked together to create distinct color palettes for each of the characters, maintaining the looks from their individual series, rather than attempting to blend the looks of all the different series for the miniseries.
Maslansky explained that the palettes were used for the lighting, sets and locations, and costumes for the lead characters as well as extras.
When the characters begin to crossover, so do the colors, and decisions were made regarding which colors come to the foreground and which are seen less on a scene-by-scene basis.
The series' title sequence, designed by Elastic,
evokes the work that the company did for the series ''
True Detective
''True Detective'' is an American anthology crime drama television series created and written by Nic Pizzolatto. The series, broadcast by the premium cable network HBO in the United States, premiered on January 12, 2014. Each season of the ...
'' by recreating the characters of the show out of elements of its setting: the sequence depicts the four Defenders out of colored topographical maps of New York City, showing the different areas of the city that each of them come from.
Cinematography
Clarkson, who also directed for ''Jessica Jones'', said that series is "very dark and very steely and very blue" while ''Daredevil'' focused more on red, and so these were emphasized early on. When Murdock and Jones meet, they are in a "steely gray-blue" room to indicate that it is Jones's world, with Knight there wearing a ''Luke Cage''-appropriate tan color, and Murdock entering and letting red into the room to show the connecting of the two characters. Clarkson was inspired by New York-set films such as ''
The French Connection'' (1971), ''
Shaft
Shaft may refer to:
Rotating machine elements
* Shaft (mechanical engineering), a rotating machine element used to transmit power
* Line shaft, a power transmission system
* Drive shaft, a shaft for transferring torque
* Axle, a shaft around whi ...
'' (1971), and ''
Serpico
''Serpico'' is a 1973 American neo-noir biographical crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Al Pacino in the title role. The screenplay was adapted by Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler from the book of the same name written by Peter ...
'' (1973) when establishing the look of the miniseries.
Lloyd began work on the miniseries several weeks before the start of filming, taking the development work that Clarkson had already done for the project and refining it; he avoided pushing the different colors so far that they made the scenes look unrealistic,
and noted that red can be an overwhelming hue on camera so limited this for the Daredevil scenes by just using it as an accent.
Lloyd did not want to recreate the techniques used on the individual series that he did not work on, and instead focused on the specific looks that Clarkson desired.
For Cage's scenes, Lloyd was inspired by
Harris Savides
Harris Savides (; Greek: Χάρης Σαββίδης; September 28, 1957 – October 9, 2012)Weber, BrucHarris Savides, Visual Poet, Dies at 55''New York Times'', October 12, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012. was an American cinematographer. Not ...
work on ''
American Gangster'' (2007), and for Iron Fist he looked to
Wong Kar-wai
Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1958) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films are characterised by nonlinear narratives, atmospheric music, and vivid cinematography involving bold, saturated colours. A pivotal figure ...
's ''
The Grandmaster'' (2013).
Rather than dedicate a significant amount of time to color grading the footage for the project in post-production, Lloyd opted to try and create as much of the desired color palette look as possible in-camera so that he could send his scenes with some written notes to colorist Tony D'Amore of
Deluxe's Encore to complete the work while Lloyd was on set.
D'Amore's work was challenging in scenes that combined multiple characters as he would have to adjust specific areas of each frame depending on where the characters were. He also had to create different color grades for the
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 ...
and
standard dynamic range versions of the show that are released on Netflix.
After her work on ''Jessica Jones'', Clarkson was most comfortable working in that more grounded world and instinctively knew what lighting and camera angles to use. She was less comfortable with the world of ''Iron Fist'' and portraying the more mythological elements of that series. During pre-production on ''The Defenders'', filming on ''Iron Fist'' was taking place. When a director from that series was not available to return to the production to reshoot a scene, Clarkson was asked to direct the new take. Clarkson found this experience "incredibly valuable", giving her a chance to work with Jones and experience the tone of his series ahead of the beginning of filming for ''The Defenders''.
Clarkson and Lloyd also learned the technical requirements for depicting the character's Iron Fist based on the process used by that series' crew, along with how the effect of Cage's abilities were created.
Costumes
Maslansky, who designed the costumes for the previous Marvel Netflix series,
had the choice between designing for ''The Defenders'' or the
first season of ''
The 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 ...
'' due to a scheduling conflict between the two productions, and chose to work on ''The Defenders'' so she could create the culmination of all her work on the previous series.
She described the process of highlighting the individual character's color palettes as a celebration, looking to infuse the costumes with red for Daredevil, navies and lavender for Jessica Jones, olive green for Iron Fist, and gold "Harlem colors" for Luke Cage.
The characters' costumes were kept consistent with their individual series,
though for Daredevil's superhero costume, which is created by Hargate Costumes in Los Angeles, the helmet was changed for ''The Defenders'' to having a matte surface that was less shiny than in ''Daredevil''.
The end of the season introduces a new costume for Iron Fist, an homage to the tracksuit that the character wears in the comics. Maslansky felt that the full tracksuit was "very '70s, a little too wise-guy, Italian mafia", and so designed a track jacket that used the classic design and colors of green with gold stripes, and paired it with cargo pants.
For Alexandra and the Hand, the executive producers suggested the color white as a repurposing of the phrase "the light at the end of the tunnel" given the group are immortal supervillains. Alexandra's costumes also feature metallic elements to suggest that she was more of a warrior in a past life and has that "fierceness or a power within her".
In general, her costumes are European inspired and of "an older world" to create "a global feeling to her wardrobe, very lush ... her wardrobe reflects that kind of ancientness".
The resurrected Elektra receives a new costume inspired by her comics appearance.
Because it would look out of place on the streets of New York, Maslansky also designed a coat for her to cover this up that was inspired by ''
The French Lieutenant's Woman
''The French Lieutenant's Woman'' is a 1969 postmodern historical fiction novel by John Fowles. The plot explores the fraught relationship of gentleman and amateur naturalist Charles Smithson and Sarah Woodruff, the former governess and inde ...
'' (1981) and ''
The Matrix
''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...
'' (1999), and meant to appeal to Alexandra's taste in clothing.
Filming
Marvel announced in February 2014 that the miniseries would be filmed in New York City,
with Marvel Comics'
editor-in-chief
An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies.
The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...
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 ...
stating in April that the show would be filming in areas of
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
and
Long Island City
Long Island City (LIC) is a residential and commercial neighborhood on the extreme western tip of Queens, a borough in New York City. It is bordered by Astoria to the north; the East River to the west; New Calvary Cemetery in Sunnyside to the ...
that still look like the old
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 ...
, in addition to sound stage work.
In April 2016, Cox confirmed a late 2016 start for filming,
following the conclusion of production on ''Iron Fist'' in October 2016.
Filming for ''The Defenders'' began on October 31,
under the
working title
A working title, which may be abbreviated and styled in trade publications after a putative title as (wt), also called a production title or a tentative title, is the temporary title of a product or project used during its development, usually ...
''Group Therapy''.
Lloyd previously served as cinematographer for the first season of ''Daredevil'' and the first episode of ''Jessica Jones''.
Due to the production demands, he brought his long-time second unit cinematography collaborator Jim McMillan onto the miniseries to help balance the workload for when episodes were filming simultaneously. Lloyd was the primary cinematographer for ''The Defenders'', but McMillan is credited for several episodes on which he did the most work.
Lloyd described the production of the miniseries as being more similar to a film than the previous Marvel Netflix television series due to the scheduling requirements of the larger cast and the fact that episodes would not always be shot in order due to location requirements. The schedule also demanded more days per episode for filming, so the overall production was not as significantly shorter as Lloyd had expected given the episode count is lower than the usual Netflix order of 13.
Additional filming locations for the miniseries included
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...
, Hell's Kitchen, and
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a Neighborhoods in Brooklyn, neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn, bordered by Greenpoint, Brooklyn, Greenpoint to the north; Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Bedford–Stuyvesant to the s ...
,
Stapleton, Staten Island
Stapleton is a neighborhood in northeastern Staten Island in New York City in the United States. It is located along the waterfront of Upper New York Bay, roughly bounded on the north by Tompkinsville at Grant Street, on the south by Clifton a ...
,
St. Nicholas Park
St. Nicholas Park is a public park in Manhattan, New York City, between the neighborhoods of Harlem, Hamilton Heights and Manhattanville. The nearly park is contained by 141st Street to the north, 128th Street to the south, St. Nicholas Terr ...
, the lobby and exterior of
Atelier
An atelier () is the private workshop or studio of a professional artist in the fine or decorative arts or an architect, where a principal master and a number of assistants, students, and apprentices can work together producing fine art or v ...
("Midland Circle"), the
Central Park Mall
The Central Park Mall is a pedestrian esplanade in Central Park, in Manhattan, New York City. The mall, leading to Bethesda Fountain, provides the only purely formal feature in the naturalistic original plan of Frederick Law Olmsted and Calve ...
, the rooftop gardens at
Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center is a large complex consisting of 19 commerce, commercial buildings covering between 48th Street (Manhattan), 48th Street and 51st Street (Manhattan), 51st Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The 14 original Art Deco ...
, the
Downtown Manhattan Heliport
The Downtown Manhattan Heliport (Downtown Manhattan/Wall St. Heliport) is a helicopter landing platform at Pier 6 in the East River in Lower Manhattan, New York City, New York.
History
Downtown Manhattan Heliport opened on December 8, 1960 ...
,
240 Centre Street
240 Centre Street, formerly the New York City Police Headquarters, is a building between Broome and Grand Streets in the Little Italy neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City.
History
It was built in 1905–1909, and was designed by the firm ...
in Manhattan, the Appel Room at
Time Warner Center
Deutsche Bank Center (also One Columbus Circle and formerly Time Warner Center) is a mixed-use building on Columbus Circle in Manhattan, New York City. The building occupies the western side of Columbus Circle and straddles the border between ...
, and the
New York City Municipal Archives
The New York City Municipal Archives (NYCMA) is a division of the New York City Department of Records and Information Services, located in the Surrogate's Courthouse in Manhattan. Founded in 1950, the Municipal Archives preserves and makes access ...
.
It was filmed
back-to-back
Back to Back or back-to-back may refer to:
Music Songs
* "Back to Back" (Drake song), 2015
* "Back to Back" (Jeanne Pruett song), 1979
*"Back to Back", a song by Pretty Maids from the 1984 album ''Red Hot and Heavy''
*"Back to Back", a song by ...
with the
second season of ''Jessica Jones'', potentially overlapping with that production.
Filming
wrapped on March 19, 2017.
Lloyd shot the miniseries with the
RED Weapon camera.
Clarkson used a set of vintage
Panavision
Panavision is an American motion picture equipment company founded in 1953 specializing in cameras and lenses, based in Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk as a small partnership to create anamorphic projection lenses during ...
lenses for her two episodes which she had used on ''Jessica Jones''. The use of these lenses created issues for the series' camera team and created supply issues with Panavision, with Lloyd noting that though the use of lenses such as these are popular, they are difficult to work with. So, for the rest of the miniseries Lloyd returned to the modern
Arri
The Arri Group () is a German manufacturer of motion picture film equipment. Based in Munich, the company was founded in 1917. It produces professional motion picture cameras, lenses, lighting and post-production equipment. Hermann Simon menti ...
Master Prime lenses that he had used on ''Daredevil'', which he said did not create a significant difference in look for the miniseries. The miniseries used a lot of
steadicam
Steadicam is a brand of camera stabilizer mounts for Movie camera, motion picture cameras invented by Garrett Brown and introduced in 1975 by Cinema Products Corporation. It was designed to isolate the camera from the camera operator's movement ...
work, so much that they essentially had two A-camera steadicam operators working simultaneously. Clarkson also planned out multiple cinematic "hero" shots which required complex camera movements and a lot of
technocrane
Technocrane is a telescopic camera crane widely utilised in the film industry and in television production worldwide.
Initial Technocranes were made by Technovision and today derivates are available from several manufacturers such as SuperTechn ...
work.
Clarkson tried to have as much individual time with each hero as possible to help the audience understand who each character was if they had not watched all of the individual series.
In addition to using color to show the characters were coming together, Clarkson tried to "twist" the episodes such as in a moment in the first episode where Cage leaves an apartment and puts his head up, which cuts to Jones entering a flat and putting her head down. Clarkson said on this, "I tried to do transitions that connected them ... so you constantly felt these world were eventually going to come together."
She also used trains in transitions to show that the characters were just a train-ride away from each other, and shot the characters with the same lenses and framing to indicate that they live in the same world even with different color palettes.
Particularly difficult sequences for Clarkson to shoot included the opening of the miniseries, which features a sword fight in a wet tunnel with water on set causing issues for the crew; the introduction of Matt Murdock in a courtroom, which was shot in a single take as a reference to the single take fight sequences that the character has in his series; and the earthquake scene, which combined practical effects such as "pulling all these things with strings and making everything move" with planning for visual effects and could have come across as "hokey" if done wrong.
Clarkson looked to film the action sequences in the different ways that the other series had, such as the "incredibly choreographed and ... almost balletic" fights from ''Daredevil'', or the more "scrappy, messy" sequences from ''Jessica Jones''. For Cage, Clarkson felt that he is "this solid, central figure that is bulletproof, is unbreakable", so she often filmed him with a static camera or steady camera, while Iron Fist was filmed in a lot more movements and with handheld cameras. The fight between the two, in the second episode, combined those two styles.
In response to criticisms of the fight sequences in ''Iron Fist'', Jones noted that he had more experience with the fighting on ''The Defenders'' due to having completed the first season of his series before beginning work on the miniseries, and had more time to learn the choreography because he was in less scenes for the ensemble project over his individual series and could rehearse in between filming. Additionally, he noted the different stunt team and directors for ''The Defenders'' allowed for improvements to be made, calling the choreography of the miniseries' action "a lot slicker" and more cohesive.
However, the miniseries still had a limited television schedule, which proved especially challenging for sequences in which the Defenders all fought together, with Cox noting that on his series it is usually just him fighting stunt-men while ''The Defenders'' required all of the hero actors to learn the choreography and work around each in a limited time. They generally had a day to learn a fight, but choreography would also be changed on set.
Music
In February 2017, John Paesano was announced as the composer for the miniseries, after previously composing for the first two seasons of ''Daredevil''.
Paesano felt "there was more license to push the envelope and lean a bit more into the orchestral colors" of each character since they were "dealing with outright superheroes that audience is familiar with". His score, which was a hybrid of synthesizers and a 30-piece orchestra, borrows the "color" of each character's themes from their individual series "to remind viewers of their individual personalities".
The music of
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...
is used throughout the miniseries, first in the second episode where Alexandra is shown listening to a performance of his
First String Quartet by the Aeolus Quartet. The scene establishes Alexandra to be "a Brahms aficionado". The composer's
First Symphony is then heard as the leaders of the Hand prepare to attack the Defenders in the miniseries' fifth episode. Finally, Alexandra listens to a defective recording of Brahms'
Tragic Overture
The ''Tragic Overture'' (german: Tragische Ouvertüre, link=no), Op. 81, is a concert overture for orchestra written by Johannes Brahms during the summer of 1880. It premiered, under Hans Richter, on 26 December 1880 in Vienna. Most perfo ...
.
A soundtrack album featuring Paesano's score was released digitally by
Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label focuses in pop, rock, alternative, hip hop, and country genres, as well as specializing in mature recordings not suitable for the flagship Walt Disney Records l ...
and Marvel Music on August 17, 2017. All music composed by John Paesano:
Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins
''The Defenders'' is the final series of the initially ordered Netflix series, after ''Daredevil'', ''Jessica Jones'', ''Luke Cage'' and ''Iron Fist''.
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 Marvel Television planned to "branch out" after the Netflix series.
In March 2015, Loeb confirmed that there was potential for the series to crossover with the List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, MCU films and the List of Marvel Cinematic Universe television series#ABC series, ABC television series since they are all set in the same universe, but said they would each remain self-contained at first because "the audience needs to understand who all of these characters are and what the world is before you then start co-mingling".
Midland Circle, where the four Defenders all initially meet, was previously mentioned in the first and second seasons of ''Daredevil'' and the
first season of ''Iron Fist.''
It is revealed to be an operation of the Hand, who bought the building to search for the life substance hidden beneath it. Ramirez said that after showing the Hand purchasing the building in the first season of ''Daredevil'', and introducing the hole they were digging in ''Daredevil''s second season, it was up to the writers on ''The Defenders'' to decide what would be in the hole. Ramirez felt that having the skeleton of a dead dragon be the source of the substance the Hand sought was the best way to tie the different series together, including because it references the first season of ''Daredevil'' where Gao sells a drug made from crushed dragon's bone.
The miniseries also references the events of ''The Avengers''.
Marketing
At the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con, a teaser trailer was shown featuring the word "Defend" forming from pieces of the logos from the four previous series over "the ominous shape of a giant hand", along with Glenn providing a voice over as Stick, asking how the four heroes plan to save New York when they cannot save themselves.
For New York Comic Con later that year, the four Defenders' actors appeared together on stage, along with Weaver, to promote the miniseries.
In April 2017, series' release date was revealed via a teaser trailer designed to look like security footage showing the four Defenders inside a Midland Circle elevator. The teaser also featured a hidden URL which led to a faux website for the ''New York Bulletin'' featuring "plenty of easter eggs and little details".
Dave Lewis of the ''Los Angeles Times'' felt having the security footage teaser end on the timecode 08:18:20:17, was "a fun way to indicate the show's release date".
A month later, Netflix and Marvel released a trailer for the miniseries.
They also released multiple motion graphics showcasing various character crossovers through the social media accounts for ''The Defenders'' as well as each of the individual series. Nicole Sobon of ''Comic Book Resources'' felt releasing these this way was "a smart marketing move by both Marvel and Netflix, as over the course of the years, the Twitter accounts [for each series] have managed to drive in plenty of fan interaction by their 'conversations' between the characters".
Cox, Ritter, Colter, Jones, and additional stars of the miniseries appeared at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con to promote the series,
where the first episode was also screened.
A red carpet premiere for the series was held at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center on July 31, 2017, where the first two episodes were screened.
Release
''The Defenders'' was released on August 18, 2017, on the streaming media, streaming service Netflix, worldwide,
in Ultra-high-definition television, Ultra HD 4K resolution, 4K and
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 ...
.
The eight, hour-long episodes were released simultaneously, as opposed to a serialized format, to encourage binge-watching, a format which has been successful for other Netflix series.
Despite being branded as a "Netflix Original", ''The Defenders'' was licensed to Netflix from Disney.
''The Defenders'' was removed from Netflix on March 1, 2022, along with the other Marvel's Netflix television series, 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 (Disney+), Star content hub.
Reception
Audience viewership
As Netflix does not reveal subscriber viewership numbers for any of their original series, the marketing analytics firm Jumpshot determined the series garnered 17% of the viewers that the second season of ''Daredevil'' received in its first 30 days, which was the most viewed season according to the firm. ''The Defenders'' was, comparably, the least-viewed of the Marvel Netflix series and had the largest week-over-week drop in viewership, declining by 67%, 48%, and 41%, respectively, over the 30-day period. Jumpshot, which "analyzes anonymized click-stream data from a panel of more than 100 million internet consumers", looked at the viewing behavior and activity of the company's U.S. members, factoring in the relative number of U.S. Netflix viewers who watched at least one episode of the season. The data excludes viewing that occurred on Netflix's connected TV or mobile apps.
In October 2017, Netflix revealed ''The Defenders'' was the third-most "Binge Raced" Netflix original series globally, and first in South Korea. Netflix defined "Binge Racers" as viewers who watched the entire series within 24 hours after its release, and that data accommodated "for time zones and is reflective of a show's launch within 24 hours of a country's release". The company did note in their announcement that the "Binge Racing" ranking had "no relation to overall viewership".
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 78% approval rating with an average rating of 6.60/10 based on 100 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "''Marvel's The Defenders'' further develops well-known characters in an action-packed arc whose payoff packs more than enough of a punch to offset its flaws." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 63 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
![Sigourney Weaver (36017523852) (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Sigourney_Weaver_%2836017523852%29_%28cropped%29.jpg)
The early screening of the first episode at San Diego Comic-Con was met by "applause throughout" from the crowd. Tracy Brown of the ''Los Angeles Times'' noted after "a quick refresher on where each hero's solo story left off ... there is forward progress in the narratives for each" of the Defenders, despite them not interacting in the episode. She added that the episode included elements expected for a Marvel Netflix series, and concluded with a binge-watching-appropriate cliffhanger.
''Polygon (website), Polygon''s Julia Alexander was "stupidly excited to binge the rest of the season" after seeing the first episode, praising the "intriguing" Alexandra and her relationship with Elektra, as well as the miniseries' efforts to focus on the individual identities of the Defenders.
Peter Sciretta for ''/Film'' called the episode "a fine start" to ''The Defenders'', but felt it did not succeed in introducing the characters to viewers who had not seen the individual series. He highlighted the use of color throughout the episode to differentiate the characters.
Reviewing the first four episodes of the series, Katharine Trendacosta for ''io9'' appreciated the writers for addressing the questions viewers wanted answered and depicting moments that fans wanted to see without "sacrificing the characters or the story". She did criticize the amount of exposition, the unoriginal story, and the "over-the-top" villains, but felt that "the good of ''The Defenders'' far outweighs the bad ... it's all a canvas to showcase Matt, Jessica, Luke, and Danny coming together [to be] more entertaining".
''The Washington Post''s David Betancourt also gave a positive review, calling the event "well worth the wait", enjoying the pairing of Cage and Rand and calling Weaver's "compelling" Alexandra the "biggest surprise" of the series.
Jeff Jensen for ''Entertainment Weekly'' gave the series a "B+", calling it "lively genre entertainment that recharges your interest in Marvel pop". He praised the fact that ''The Defenders'' was only 8 episodes long, compared to the 13 of previous Marvel Netflix seasons.
Dan Jolin of ''Empire (film magazine), Empire'' gave ''The Defenders'' 3 out of 5 stars, finding "enough joy" in the interactions between the Defenders to make it feel "worth the wait". However, he felt it failed to "up the ante story-wise", and was disappointed that Weaver's Alexandra was "yet another businessperson baddie whose dirty deeds are hidden by sharp suits".
''Collider (website), Collider''s Allison Keene also gave the miniseries 3 stars out of 5. She felt some of the solo series issues such as pacing and narrative choices were still present, but there were still elements to enjoy including Jessica Jones and the banter among the heroes. Keene felt that the pacing issues improve once the Defenders finally unite. She criticized the focus on Rand's company, and also said that the miniseries felt less like a culmination or ending than she would have liked.
Reviewing the series for ''Uproxx'', Alan Sepinwall felt ''The Defenders'' borrowed the best elements of the previous series, such as the fights scenes of ''Daredevil'', Jessica Jones's "snappy dialogue, the music (particularly in Luke Cage's scenes), and Rosario Dawson. However, he felt that the pacing of the four episodes reviewed was "yet another Netflix ultra-slow burn". He saw this improve once the four heroes meet in the fourth episode, and hoped that in the second half of the season "both [the] show and team could justify their existence as something more than a package Marvel put together years ago in the hopes everything would work out".
''Variety (magazine), Variety''s Maureen Ryan felt ''The Defenders'' had some positive elements and especially praised Weaver's performance, but described the series as "workmanlike" and said it was "a bit blander" than a series about superheroes and ninjas should have been.
''USA Today''s Kelly Lawler was more critical of the series, awarding it 2 out of 4 stars. Lawler felt Rand was the "undeniable handicap" of the series, having hoped that "''The Defenders'' would shy away from Danny and his petulance, but unfortunately, Iron Fist is integral to the larger plot". She also felt the series had pacing issues, and said the Defenders as a group "lack chemistry". Lawler felt Weaver was "a bright spot" but concluded "viewers who were attracted to one or more of the Netflix series for their unique perspectives will be disappointed" by ''The Defenders''.
Reviewing the entire miniseries, Daniel Krupa of ''IGN'' gave it a 6.5 out of 10, saying, ''The Defenders'' felt "uneven, hastily-planned, and ultimately like a missed opportunity". Krupa pointed out the pacing issues and described the Hand as "an ill-defined, confused and confusing antagonist" that did not compare favorably to previous Marvel Netflix villains such as
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 ...
, Purple Man, Kilgrave, and Cottonmouth (Cornell Cottonmouth), Cornell "Cottonmouth" Stokes. Krupa did call the chemistry between the main characters "excellent", and praised Yung as providing "the most credible and emotionally-rich villain" in Elektra. The highlight of the miniseries for him was the Chinese restaurant scene in the fourth episode.
Accolades
Cox and Yung were named TVLine's "Performers of the Week" for the week ending August 26, 2017. The honor was specifically for their final scene of the miniseries, as they fight and argue while a building collapses around them. The site described the scene as an "emotionally compelling two-hander".
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! scope="row" rowspan="8" , 2018
, 49th NAACP Image Awards, NAACP Image Awards
, NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series, Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series
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Mike Colter
Mike Randal Colter (born August 26, 1976) is an American actor best known for his role as Luke Cage in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in the streaming television series ''Luke Cage'' (2016–2018), '' The Defenders'' (2017), and ''Jess ...
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, Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television, Best Supporting Actress on Television
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Krysten Ritter
Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series '' Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She the ...
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, rowspan="4" , Black Reel Awards
, Black Reel Award for Outstanding Television Movie or Limited Series, Outstanding Television Movie or Limited Series
, ''Marvel's The Defenders''
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, Black Reel Award for Outstanding Actor, TV Movie or Limited Series, Outstanding Actor, TV Movie or Limited Series
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Mike Colter
Mike Randal Colter (born August 26, 1976) is an American actor best known for his role as Luke Cage in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in the streaming television series ''Luke Cage'' (2016–2018), '' The Defenders'' (2017), and ''Jess ...
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, rowspan="2" , Black Reel Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress, TV Movie or Limited Series, Outstanding Supporting Actress, TV Movie or Limited Series
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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 ...
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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' ...
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, 70th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards
, Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music, Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music
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Future
In January 2015, Netflix COO Ted Sarandos said that ''The Defenders'' was "eligible to go into multiple seasons for sure" and Netflix would look at "how well [they] are addressing both the Marvel fanbase but also the broader fanbase" in terms of determining if additional seasons would be appropriate.
However, in July 2016, Loeb referred to the miniseries as a one-off event rather than a season of an ongoing story.
Jones said the miniseries "feels like the end of Phase One" of the Marvel Netflix series, with the events of the miniseries leading into "the beginning of another phase",
while Ritter said she would be happy to return for more after enjoying the experience making these episodes, despite it planned as a one-time event.
In mid-2018, Loeb and Netflix vice president of original content Cindy Holland both said that there were "no plans" to continue the series.
In September 2018, Netflix renamed the Facebook page for the series to "NX", Netflix's "new geek-friendly division of genre content".
Netflix did not alter the series' Twitter account in a similar manner. The change left fans upset at the apparent "bait-and-switch", with many suggesting they would have followed a separate page for NX had it been created in that manner.
Kofi Outlaw of ''ComicBook.com'' felt this change was "a pretty big indicator that Netflix is done with ''The Defenders'' as one of its original series".
In response to this, Loeb reiterated that there were still no plans for the series to continue at that time, but this did not mean that it would never be continued in the future, especially since a "Defenders" team was not actually formed in this miniseries and future ''Defenders'' stories could then focus on different characters.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Defenders (miniseries), The
The Defenders (miniseries),
2010s American drama television miniseries
2017 American television series debuts
2017 American television series endings
American action television series
Crossover drama television series
English-language Netflix original programming
Serial drama television series
Superhero crossover television shows
Television series by ABC Studios
Television shows based on Marvel Comics
Television shows filmed in New York City
Television shows set in New York City