With Daredevil: Born Again bringing Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, speculation has been growing about the rest of the street-level heroes from Netflix’s The Defenders series. Now, Marvel Studios’ Head of Streaming, Television, and Animation, Brad Winderbaum, has confirmed that the studio is actively exploring the return of Mike Colter’s Luke Cage, Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones, and Finn Jones’ Iron Fist.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Winderbaum shared insight into the possibility of revisiting these characters. “I can’t say much, but I’ll tell you that it’s so exciting to be able to play in that sandbox,” he said. “Obviously, we don’t have the unlimited storytelling resources like a comic book. If you can draw it, you can do it. But in live-action, it’s about dealing with actors, schedules, and the massive scale of production in order to build a cinematic universe, especially on television. That said, it is certainly something that is creatively extremely exciting and that we are very much exploring.”
Marvel first brought these characters to life through a partnership with Netflix, launching a self-contained universe that spanned multiple series. Cox’s Daredevil debuted in 2015 and ran for three seasons, followed by Jessica Jones (2015-2019), Luke Cage (2016-2018), Iron Fist (2017-2018), and the crossover event The Defenders (2017). The slate also included The Punisher starring Jon Bernthal (2017-2019).
Despite strong audience engagement, these series were gradually canceled as Marvel Studios shifted its focus to in-house productions for Disney+. However, interest in the characters never waned. The arrival of Disney+ led to their reintroduction into the official MCU catalog, with all of the original Netflix series migrating to the platform in 2022.
Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio (Wilson Fisk/Kingpin) have already made their MCU reappearances in projects like Spider-Man: No Way Home, Hawkeye, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, and Echo. With Bernthal’s Punisher confirmed to appear in Daredevil: Born Again, the door seems open for other Defenders characters to return.
In 2024, Ritter expressed her enthusiasm about reprising Jessica Jones, reacting to Winderbaum’s comments during the D23 Brazil Expo. “Brad Winderbaum said that? That’s really exciting to hear. Isn’t that the guy who makes the call?” she told ComicBook during an interview for Sonic the Hedgehog 3. “Come on, Brad! Let’s get it going. Let’s do it. I’ll be ready.”
While no official announcements have been made, Marvel’s renewed interest in its street-level heroes suggests that audiences may not have seen the last of Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist. With the multiverse expanding and new storytelling opportunities emerging, their return could be just around the corner.