Marvel Netflix Shows Officially Leaving Streaming Service This Month
Netflix may be known for the massive depth of content added to its library on a regular basis, but it appears some of the platform’s most popular ‘Originals’ are leaving the service at the end of February. Upon viewing Netflix entries for Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Punisher, and The Defenders, each selection is currently slated to leave the service on February 28th. Other Marvel content such as Agents of SHIELD are also shown to be removed by the end of the month, leaving collabs like LEGO Black Panther as the few remaining Marvel content on the platform.
Deadline confirmed these suspicions in a new report, as “sources” expect licenses for nearly all Marvel Netflix content to swiftly expire at the end of the month, with each series’ rights officially reverting to Disney at the stroke of March. According to the site, Disney is currently keeping the streaming future of The Defenders and Agents of SHIELD under wraps, with possible homes being found on Disney Plus or the Disney-majority-owned Hulu. Wherever they end up, the company is expected to announce plans for the superhero shows “soon.”
Former head of Marvel TV Jeph Loeb struck the Marvel Netflix deal in 2013 with the goal of assembling Daredevil with street-level heroes Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Punisher in a Defenders miniseries. These plans were eventually carried to completion in 2017, but Netflix soon saw the entirety of the ‘Defendersverse’ cancelled, with “creative differences” and cost of production suggested to have contributed to each series’ finales. The Defenders’ fate of was cemented when Loeb departed Marvel in 2019 and all TV duties were folded into Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige.
While the book remained closed on Marvel Netflix heroes for several years, recent projects have effectively re-opened the possibility of introducing Daredevil and the Defenders into the wider MCU. Wilson Fisk, a Daredevil character, recently featured as the chief villain in the Disney Plus series Hawkeye, and the “Man Without Fear” himself cameoed in the December-released Spider-Man: No Way Home as his “really good lawyer” alter ego Matt Murdock. Though the Defenders are leaving Netflix, it appears the group may actually have a future now that they’re moving elsewhere.
— Daredevil (@Daredevil) November 30, 2018
What do you think? Are you surprised to see Marvel Netflix shows leave the streaming service, or was it only a matter of time before The Defenders reunited with the MCU? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter and Facebook to be informed of the latest gaming and entertainment news 24 hours a day!
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Phone-browsing Wikipedia in one hand and clutching his trusty controller in the other, the legendary Eric Hall spreads his wealth of knowledge as a writer for Don't Feed the Gamers. Be sure to catch his biweekly "Throwback Thursday" segment for a nostalgic look at trivia from the past.
