The end of an era has arrived, with Netflix officially pulling the plug on the remaining Marvel shows. ‘The Punisher’ will not be getting a third season, while season 3 of ‘Jessica Jones’ will be its final season.
What began in 2013 with four series and a miniseries, has ended with twelve seasons and the ‘Defenders’ miniseries. Spread amongst five shows, the twelve seasons comprised of three for ‘Daredevil’ and ‘Jessica Jones,’ and two for ‘Luke Cage,’ ‘Iron Fist,’ and ‘The Punisher.’
Moreover, Netflix gave statements regarding the cancellations of both ‘The Punisher’ and ‘Jessica Jones’ today:
“Marvel’s ‘The Punisher’ will not return for a third season on Netflix. Showrunner Steve Lightfoot, the terrific crew, and exceptional cast including star Jon Bernthal, delivered an acclaimed and compelling series for fans, and we are proud to showcase their work on Netflix for years to come.”
“In addition, in reviewing our Marvel programming, we have decided that the upcoming third season will also be the final season for Marvel’s ‘Jessica Jones.’ We are grateful to showrunner Melissa Rosenberg, star Krysten Ritter and the entire cast and crew, for three incredible seasons of this groundbreaking series, which was recognized by the Peabody Awards among many others.”
“We are grateful to Marvel for five years of our fruitful partnership and thank the passionate fans who have followed these series from the beginning.”
So, there you have it, this is the end of the relationship between Netflix and Marvel. The low viewership and expensive cost of the Netflix shows, along with the upcoming Disney+ streaming service, were all factors in this decision.
Now, there is a two-year clause in place. The clause prevents any usage of the characters, starting from the point of cancellation. Which means, shows like ‘Iron Fist,’ ‘Luke Cage,’ and ‘Daredevil’ have to wait until 2020. Meanwhile, ‘The Punisher’ and ‘Jessica Jones’ have to wait until 2021. Perhaps there is still a chance we these characters again though. ..
Which brings us to head of Marvel Television Jeph Loeb, who gave his own statement:
“It had never been done before. Four separate television series, each with different super-talented showrunners, writers, directors, cast and crew, coming out months apart and then …they would meet in a single event series all set in the heart of New York City. We called them The Defenders.
And together we were thrilled by stories of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and even the Punisher joined in! They said it couldn’t be done.But Marvel assembled amazing teams to write, produce, direct, edit, and score 13 seasons and 161 one-hour episodes. Take a moment and go online and look at the dazzling list of actors, writers, directors, and musicians who graced us with the very best of their craft.
We loved each and every minute of it.
And we did it all for you — the fans — who cheered for us around the world and made all the hard work worth it.
On behalf of everyone at Marvel Television, we couldn’t be more proud or more grateful to our audience. Our Network partner may have decided they no longer want to continue telling the tales of these great characters… but you know Marvel better than that,” the company added.
As Matthew Murdock’s Dad once said, ‘The measure of a man is not how he gets knocked to the mat, it’s how he gets back up. To be continued…!”
Maybe there is a chance after all, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
Also, Krysten Ritter took to Instagram to assure fans that the upcoming final season will “complete her journey.”
Thus, the third season will be a planned ending for the series:
The second season of ‘The Punisher’ is now streaming. ‘Jessica Jones’ season 3 will premiere sometime between April and June.
Source: Deadline