“Daredevil” showrunners Douglas Petrie and Marco Ramirez have been chosen to helm Marvel and Netflix‘s upcoming miniseries “The Defenders.” Another alum from “Marvel’s Daredevil,” Oscar nominee Drew Goddard (“The Martian”), will also serve as executive producer on the project.
The crossover series will see the titular characters from “Daredevil,” “Jessica Jones,” “Luke Cage” and “Iron Fist” join forces to face their biggest threat yet, following the launch of each character’s solo Netflix series.
“Doug and Marco captivated our members around the world with their continuation of the story of Matt Murdock in ‘Marvel’s Daredevil,’ and we can’t wait to see how they and Drew will introduce the full Defenders team to our global audience,” said Cindy Holland, Netflix Vice President of Original Content.
“We’re incredibly excited to be able to bring our four street level heroes together in an epic tale woven by Doug and Marco whose work on ‘Marvel’s Daredevil’ speaks for itself,” said executive producer and Head of Marvel Television, Jeph Loeb. “They write and produce not only great action and adventure, but also the heart and touch of humor that’s makes us Marvel. With the inclusion of Drew Goddard, we’ve got a team that’s as formidable as the Defenders themselves.”
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“This is the big one. Four amazing casts, four amazing series, now all in one amazing story,” said Petrie and Ramirez. “We are thrilled at the opportunity to deliver the show that both we and the fans have been waiting for.”
“Daredevil” debuted its well-received sophomore season in March, while Season 1 of “Jessica Jones” was met with critical acclaim and a Peabody Award nomination after launching last November; the Krysten Ritter-led series was renewed for Season 2 in January. Mike Colter’s Luke Cage, who was introduced in “Jessica Jones,” will bow his own eponymous series on September 30, while “Iron Fist,” starring Finn Jones, is currently in production with a premiere date yet to be announced. “Daredevil” star Charlie Cox recently revealed that filming on “The Defenders” will commence at the end of this year.
Petrie and Ramirez took the reins on “Daredevil” for Season 2 following the departure of Season 1 showrunner Steven DeKnight, and the duo quickly established that they could service the storylines of multiple Marvel icons in one series with the introduction of new characters The Punisher (Jon Bernthal) and Elektra (Elodie Yung) in the action-packed drama.
Goddard has been part of the Marvel family for several years; the “Cabin in the Woods” writer-director was initially on board as showrunner for”Daredevil” Season 1, but stepped down to focus on his feature film commitments in May 2014, staying on as exec producer and penning the first two installments of the series while DeKnight took over as showrunner.
