Iron Fist (TV series)

Iron Fist
Genre
Based on Iron Fist 
by Roy Thomas
Gil Kane
Developed by Scott Buck
Starring
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
Production
Executive producer(s)
Location(s) New York City
Cinematography Manuel Billeter
Production company(s)
Distributor Netflix
Release
Original network Netflix
Chronology
Preceded by Marvel's Luke Cage
Related shows Marvel Cinematic Universe television series

Marvel's Iron Fist, or simply Iron Fist, is an upcoming American web television series developed for Netflix by Scott Buck, 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 the franchise and is the fourth in a series of shows that will lead up to a Defenders crossover miniseries. The series is produced by Marvel Television in association with ABC Studios, with Buck serving as showrunner.

Finn Jones stars as Danny Rand / Iron Fist, a martial arts expert with the ability to call upon the power of the Iron Fist. Jessica Henwick, David Wenham, Jessica Stroup and Tom Pelphrey also star. Development for the series began in late 2013, with Buck hired as the series showrunner in December 2015 and Jones cast as Rand in February 2016. Filming began in New York City in April 2016.

Premise

Danny Rand returns to New York City, after being missing for years, to fight corruption with a proficiency in kung-fu and the ability to call upon the power of the Iron Fist.[2]

Cast and characters

A billionaire Buddhist monk and martial arts expert, proficient in kung-fu with the ability to call upon the power of the Iron Fist.[2][3][4] On being cast as the character, Jones said he was drawn to the character and his background, saying, "I really enjoy how he’s a superhero with a real heart but has spiritual elements as well. I think it’s going to be an exciting character to play because there’s this contraction of on one hand he’s from a very wealthy family, he’s a billionaire, on the other hand he’s been in this world of K’un-Lun for a long time where he’s learned kung fu and buddhist philosophy. There’s a contradiction in those elements that’s going to be really fun to play." In preparation for the role, Jones studied kung fu, wushu and tai chi, along with weight training, Buddhist philosophy and meditation.[5]

Production

Development

In October 2013, Deadline reported that Marvel was preparing four drama series and a miniseries, totaling 60 episodes, to present to video on demand services and cable providers, with Netflix, Amazon, and WGN America expressing interest.[9] A few weeks later, Marvel and Disney announced that they would provide Netflix with live action series centered around Iron Fist, Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage, leading up to a miniseries based on the Defenders.[1] In January 2015, the official title was revealed to be Marvel's Iron Fist.[10]

In November 2015, Marvel Television head and executive producer Jeph Loeb addressed unconfirmed rumors that Marvel was having a difficult time balancing Iron Fist's mystical elements in its grounded world, and that the series would be changed to a film or replaced with a Punisher series, saying, "There was a lot of speculation about what was going on with Iron Fist, because [fans] hadn't heard anything about it, but there's never been any change at all". He added that Marvel and Netflix deliberately wanted to hold off on Iron Fist news until Jessica Jones premiered, in order for that series to get the spotlight since it revolved around a character largely unknown to the mass audience, unlike Iron Fist, and that news on a showrunner would be coming.[11] In December 2015, Marvel announced that Scott Buck would serve as showrunner and executive producer of the series.[2]

Also in January 2015, Netflix CCO Ted Sarandos stated the series 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.[12] In July 2015, Sarandos said some of the Defenders series would "selectively have multiple seasons as they come out of the gate."[13]

Casting

Casting for Iron Fist began by January 2016,[14] with Finn Jones being cast as Danny Rand / Iron Fist in February,[3] but not officially confirmed by Marvel until March.[4] At the same time, Marvel was in the process of searching for actors of Asian descent to play the role of Shang-Chi.[15] By April, Jessica Henwick, David Wenham, Jessica Stroup and Tom Pelphrey were cast as Colleen Wing,[6] Harold Meachum,[7] Joy Meachum and Ward Meachum, respectively, rounding out the main cast for the series.[8]

Filming

Marvel announced in February 2014 that the series would be filmed in New York City,[16] with Marvel Comics' editor-in-chief Joe Quesada stating in April that the show would be filming in areas of Brooklyn and Long Island City that still look like the old Hell’s Kitchen, in addition to sound stage work.[17] Filming began in April 2016,[18][19] with the working title Kick.[20] Manuel Billeter serves as director of photography for the series, after doing the same for Jessica Jones and Luke Cage.[21]

Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins

Iron Fist is the fourth of the ordered Netflix series, after Marvel's Daredevil, Marvel's Jessica Jones and Marvel's Luke Cage, before leading into the miniseries, Marvel's The Defenders.[22][23] In November 2013, Disney CEO Bob Iger stated that if the characters prove popular on Netflix, “It’s quite possible that they could become feature films,"[24] which Sarandos echoed in July 2015.[13] In August 2014, Vincent D'Onofrio, Wilson Fisk in Daredevil, stated that after the "series stuff with Netflix", Marvel has "a bigger plan to branch out".[25] In March 2015, Loeb spoke on the ability for the series to crossover with the MCU films and the ABC television series, saying, "It all exists in the same universe. As it is now, in the same way that our films started out as self-contained and then by the time we got to The Avengers, it became more practical for Captain America to do a little crossover into Thor 2 and for Bruce Banner to appear at the end of Iron Man 3. We have to earn that. The audience needs to understand who all of these characters are and what the world is before you then start co-mingling in terms of where it's going."[26]

Release

Iron Fist is scheduled to be released on the streaming service Netflix. The 13 hour-long episodes will be released simultaneously, as opposed to a serialized format, to encourage binge-watching, a format which has been successful for other Netflix series.[16][17] In January 2015, Netflix COO Ted Sarandos said Netflix planned to release a Marvel series approximately a year apart from each other after Daredevil's April 2015 release.[27]

Marketing

Disney Consumer Products created a small line of products that cater to a more adult audience, given the show’s edgier tone. Paul Gitter, senior VP of Marvel Licensing for Disney Consumer Products said, “We’ll be focusing less on products that are targeted at the very young consumer,” and more on teens and adult with products at stores or outlets like Hot Topic. Additionally, the series will be supported by a Marvel Knights merchandise program that will open new opportunities for product lines as well as new collector focused opportunities. Despite not being a feature film property, licensing partners wanted to pair up with Marvel given its previous successes; “When we go to partners, they pretty much rely on history as being reflective of the future,” Gitter said.[28]

References

  1. 1 2 Lieberman, David (November 7, 2013). "Disney To Provide Netflix With Four Series Based On Marvel Characters". Deadline.com. Archived from the original on April 8, 2014. Retrieved November 7, 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 Strom, Marc (December 7, 2015). "Scott Buck to Showrun the Netflix Original Series 'Marvel's Iron Fist'". Marvel.com. Archived from the original on December 7, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Hibberd, James (February 25, 2016). "Game of Thrones actor Finn Jones to play Iron Fist". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on February 25, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  4. 1 2 Strom, Marc (March 17, 2016). "Finn Jones to Star in the Netflix Original Series 'Marvel's Iron Fist'". Marvel.com. Archived from the original on March 17, 2016. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  5. ↑ Hibberd, James (April 12, 2016). "Finn Jones talks playing Marvel's Iron Fist (his training is insane)". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 12, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Hibberd, James (April 1, 2016). "Marvel's Iron Fist casts The Force Awakens actress in lead role". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 1, 2016. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  7. 1 2 "David Wenham Cast in Netflix Original Series 'Marvel’s Iron Fist'". Marvel.com. April 11, 2016. Archived from the original on April 11, 2016. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 Wagmeister, Elizabeth (April 18, 2016). "‘90210’ Alum Jessica Stroup, Tom Pelphrey Join Netflix’s ‘Marvel’s Iron Fist’ (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on April 18, 2016. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  9. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (October 14, 2013). "Marvel Preps 60-Episode Package Of Four Series & A Mini For VOD & Cable Networks". Deadline.com. Archived from the original on April 8, 2014. Retrieved October 14, 2013.
  10. ↑ "NETFLIX POSTS DAREDEVIL, JESSICA JONES, LUKE CAGE, IRON FIST & DEFENDERS INFO". Cosmic Book News. January 15, 2015. Archived from the original on January 16, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  11. ↑ Ching, Albert (November 20, 2015). "Jeph Loeb Says There's 'Never Been Any Change' On "Iron Fist"". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on November 21, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
  12. ↑ Schwartz, Terri (January 7, 2015). "Netflix announces 'Daredevil,' 'Bloodline,' 'Kimmy Schmidt' premiere dates". Zap2It. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  13. 1 2 Goldman, Eric (July 28, 2015). "Netflix On Marvel Series Release Plan And If Punisher Could Get A Spinoff". IGN. Archived from the original on July 28, 2015. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  14. ↑ Goldman, Eric (January 17, 2016). "Marvel's Jessica Jones Renewed For Season 2 By Netflix". IGN. Archived from the original on January 17, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  15. ↑ Keyes, Rob (March 4, 2016). "Iron Fist May Setup Shang-Chi As Marvel’s Next Netflix Hero". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 4, 2016.
  16. 1 2 "Marvel's Netflix Series to Film in New York City". Marvel.com. February 26, 2014. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  17. 1 2 Blackmon, Joe (April 27, 2014). "Marvel Netflix Series Part Of Marvel Cinematic Universe, Available For Binge Watching According To Joe Quesada". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on April 28, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  18. ↑ White, James (February 25, 2016). "Game Of Thrones' Finn Jones will play Iron Fist". Empire. Archived from the original on February 25, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  19. ↑ Gallaway, Lauren (April 18, 2016). "Look: Finn Jones Is Danny Rand In First Images From "Iron Fist" Filming". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on April 18, 2016. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  20. ↑ Lovett, James (December 15, 2015). "Iron Fist Casting And Production Details Revealed". Comicbook.com. Archived from the original on April 14, 2016. Retrieved April 14, 2016.
  21. ↑ "10 Cinematographers to Watch 2016: Manuel Billeter". Variety. April 20, 2016. Archived from the original on April 30, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Marvel TV head: 'Daredevil' starts shooting in July, 'Jessica Jones' next up". HitFix. March 24, 2014. Archived from the original on March 25, 2014. Retrieved March 25, 2014.
  23. ↑ White, Brett (March 31, 2015). "MARVEL NAMES "SOUTHLAND" PRODUCER HODARI COKER AS "LUKE CAGE" SHOWRUNNER". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  24. ↑ Graser, Marc (November 7, 2013). "Why Disney Chose to Put Marvel's New TV Shows on Netflix". Variety. Archived from the original on February 20, 2014. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
  25. ↑ Romano, Nick. "Exclusive: ‘Daredevil’ Star Vincent D’Onofrio Talks Kingpin, Marvel Fans and ‘Defenders’ Crossover". ScreenCrush. Archived from the original on August 25, 2014. Retrieved August 25, 2014.
  26. ↑ Tanswell, Adam (March 4, 2015). "Marvel's Head of TV talks Agents of SHIELD, Inhumans and Netflix". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on March 7, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  27. ↑ Goldman, Eric (January 7, 2015). "Netflix Clarifies Release Plans For Marvel Series After Daredevil". IGN. Archived from the original on January 7, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  28. ↑ Graser, Marc (March 11, 2015). "Marvel’s Merchandise Plan for ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron:’ ‘Make the Big Bigger’". Variety. Archived from the original on March 11, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2015.

External links

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