When Marvel‘s Netflix shows were first announced last year, it was quickly became clear what their model would be. The shows would focus on smaller scale heroes —Daredevil, Powerman, Iron Fist, etc.— before culminating with a Defenders team-up mini-series. If that plan sounded a lot like the template Marvel used to get marquee characters into "The Avengers" film, that’s because it was meant to. If you had any doubts that Marvel wouldn’t fix what wasn’t broke, an interview with Netflix honcho Ted Sarandos in Empire (via Latino Review) confirmed that his company’s plan will follow the mould of the feature films.
"It was really based on the theatrical model of ‘The Avengers.’ Could you take another group of characters, The Defenders, and go about it the same way? Normally, they do the big movie and then eventually they get to the group origin story. Having 13 hours to tell each of these stories, you can go right to the origin story and the action at the same time," he explained.
And that’s not all. The Netflix exec even reveals that members of The Defenders could possibly meet up with The Avengers. "It has definitely been talked about," he confirmed, adding about the four shows: " ‘Daredevil’ is already shooting, since that’s out first. Eventually the series will run very close together. You can then have a separate season where the characters will cross over."
And with more time and ground to cover, the shows could go in directions that Marvel films have been too fearful to tread thus far. "The series will not be afraid to go darker than the film did. What we love about this particular set of heroes is that they’re a little more down to Earth. Costume wise and also in that these are gritty crime stories, more in the streets than in the clouds," Sarandos said. So we’re curious how the cross-pollination will unfold as the various shows gear up.
In related Marvel news, "Guardians Of The Galaxy" co-writer Nicole Perlman recently said on Twitter that she wrote a "Black Widow" treatment quite a few years ago, but that she’s not presently developing that movie. However, that hasn’t stopped others from voicing their opinion of the character. In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, "Game Of Thrones" helmer Neil Marshall recently said he’d be excited to direct Scarlett Johansson in a Marvel solo film. "I would love to do a ‘Black Widow’ movie. That’s perfect, I would love to do that," the director stated. "That character is really interesting, she doesn’t have any superpowers, she just has extraordinary skills, and the world that she comes from, being this ex-K.G.B. assassin, I find that really fascinating."
Frankly, we’ll believe a "Black Widow"movie when we see it. We’d wager minor characters like her will continue to go the "Captain America: Winter Soldier" route —acting as supporting characters to Marvel flagship heroes (as has already been rumored for Jeremy Renner‘s Hawkeye in "Captain America 3").
Lastly, it looks like the company isn’t too invested in "Big Hero 6," a Disney animated film based on one of their own properties, with no reprints of the comic planned. Why? It’s a simple matter of dollar and cents. "If you had two things, and on one you earned 100% of the revenues from the efforts that you put into making it, and the other you earned a much smaller percentage for the same amount of time and effort, you’d be more likely to concentrate more heavily on the first, wouldn’t you?” Marvel executive editor Tom Brevoort wrote on his Tumblr (via THR) earlier this summer. Good point.