There's Hope On The Horizon For Luke Cage And Iron Fist Fans
As time continues its unforgiving march forward, we remain bound by undeniable truths of being. Objects in motion tend to stay in motion. Matter throws off energy, bringing us closer and closer to the heat death of the universe as Disney continues its march to world entertainment domination. This insatiable drive to achieve Marvel's manifest destiny to have all its characters united under one studio roof is good news for fans of Luke Cage and Iron Fist, as Marvel is now within spitting distance of being allowed to bring their legendary Heroes for Hire back into the cinematic fold.
Comic book aficionados and TV binge enthusiasts will remember that just a few years back, Marvel and Netflix teamed up to bring audiences all the makings of a good old-fashioned Defenders team: Jessica Jones, Daredevil, The Punisher, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist. The results of the team-up were uncharacteristically mixed for Marvel, considering the studio has released nearly two dozen films in twelve years and never lost a buck on any of them. In October of 2018, the House that Stan Built started pulling plugs. First they cancelled Iron Fist and Luke Cage, then over the course of the next six months, everything else. The moribund partnership between Marvel and Netflix had finally reached its inevitable demise.
Luke Cage and Iron Fist are back on the job market
The timing of the cancellations is important. According to ComicBook.com, once Marvel started axing its Netflix shows, it came to light that a clause in the studio's contract forbade the use of series' characters for a period of two years after cancellation. Especially observant fans will have noticed that two years is almost exactly the amount of time that's passed since October of 2018.
That means we're in the home stretch, as Marvel is about to be in the clear, legally speaking, to start work on new iterations of Iron Fist and Luke Cage. As soon as next month, we could see announcements regarding new, exciting stories from some of the superhero universe's most iconic street-level heroes. While Disney has kept any forthcoming plans under wraps, it's difficult to imagine that they'll sit on the properties for long. Meanwhile, Jessica Jones and the Punisher won't be up for grabs until next February, but the rights to Daredevil will be available to the studio as early as this November. Defenders, assemble!