As the Netflix corner of the MCU has continued to truck along, Marvel has been green lighting shows left and right. What began as five series with a total of 60 episodes has quickly grown into eleven seasons of six shows and a projected total of 138 episodes. While nothing new has been added since the confirmation of Iron Fist Season 2 a new report from Deadline suggests that the time table for these shows has accelerated far beyond what we’ve come to expect.
Marvel Television and Netflix’s footprint in the state of New York has grown to include an additional 23 episodes of its series to be shot in the state by the end of 2017 raising its overall count to 135 episodes. According to the Governor’s Office of Motion Picture & Television Development, this represents the largest television projection project commitment in New York State history, with Disney’s Marvel TV and Netflix more than doubling their initial commitment since the labels’ production in the state was announced in late 2013. That grand total includes shoots for the streaming series The Defenders which is set in New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen and The Punisher plus other superhero series. The additional 23 episodes to be shot this year include season 2 of Iron Fist and season 3 of Dardevil while 26 episodes are currently in production for season 2 of Luke Cage and season 2 of Jessica Jones.
Again, all of these shows have been previously announced. But the production schedule was hazy. Mike Colter suggested that Luke Cage Season 2 wouldn’t be done until next spring. This Deadline data, however, suggests that both Luke Cage Season 2 and Jessica Jones Season 2 will be finished before the end of this year and that 23 of 26 Daredevil Season 3 and Iron Fist Season 2 episodes will also be finished. This is remarkable when considering where things started with this project. After being announced in November 2013, Netflix slowly churned out the first four series over the next three and a half years. Now we have most of that cycle done in about nine months!
The next obvious question is how exactly this acceleration will affect the release schedule. 2015 and 2016 featured two shows, with three shows coming this year. Could we get four next year? It certainly seems a possibility since almost four complete seasons will be in the can by New Year’s Day 2018. As more shows are added this is almost a necessity. The nearly three-year wait between seasons of Jessica Jones has been excessive. If these shows can cut down the wait between seasons to about 18 months everyone benefits. And who doesn’t want an MCU show every three months on Netflix!
One more thought along the lines of a conspiracy theory of my own. Doesn’t it seem odd that the shows are paired by Deadline? Instead of tallies for each of the four, Jones and Cage are paired with Daredevil and Iron Fist. Could they possibly be working on overlapping stories? Might the production of those pairings be somewhat combined by more than the overlap of shooting schedules?
What do you think? Would four Netflix shows a year be too much? Do you think The Punisher will make his way to a second season? Hoping for another season of The Defenders? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Deadline
