Netflix Could Stop Marvel Making Its Best Non-Avengers Team-Up Movie

Marvel’s best option for a non-Avengers team-up movie, The Defenders, may be taken away by Netflix. The current state of the MCU gives Marvel an excellent opportunity to introduce the classic Defenders, but Marvel’s deal with Netflix could stop that from happening.

Years ago, Marvel and Netflix reached a deal that would allow Netflix to produce several TV shows starring Marvel characters. Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and Jessica Jones all received their own shows. All four shows led to a team-up in Netflix’s eight-episode The Defenders miniseries. The series, which was considered a failure, has been credited with being what killed the Marvel-Netflix partnership. Now, Marvel is done making shows for Netflix, and has since moved on to making original content for Disney’s new streaming service, Disney+.

This incarnation of the Defenders won’t appear again, but can the MCU create its own version of the team? Dozens of heroes have called themselves the Defenders in Marvel Comics, so a second Defenders team could end up being completely unique. Based on what Marvel Studios has to work with in Phase 4 and rumors surrounding Namor the Sub-Mariner, all the pieces may soon be in place for Marvel Studios to introduce the quintessential Defenders – but Netflix may be standing in the way.

The MCU May Soon Have The Classic Defenders

Thanks to Netflix, the most recognizable Defenders team to general audiences consists of Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Daredevil, and Jessica Jones, but when it comes to the comic books, they’re far from the most important version of the Defenders. This distinction belongs to the classic Defenders from the 1970s, specifically the Hulk, Doctor Strange, Namor the Sub-Mariner, Valkyrie, Nighthawk, and Silver Surfer. Half of these heroes are already in the MCU, with two appearing in upcoming MCU movies. Doctor Strange has a sequel hitting theaters in 2021, and Valkyrie is confirmed to appear in Thor: Love and Thunder. What Marvel has planned for Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk has yet to be determined.

A fourth key member of the Defenders has been the subject of numerous rumors for years. It’s been speculated for a while that Namor is the the villain of Black Panther 2, and that Namor is in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. Another rumor suggests that Marvel has gained full control of its rights to Namor. Even if this isn’t the case, it seems likely that Marvel will eventually want to make some use of Namor, who is quite possibly the most important Marvel character yet to appear in live-action. Once Marvel Studios has Namor, it will have the four most iconic Defenders, and the most logical step to take next would be to bring them together on the big screen.

How The MCU’s Defenders Would Be Different

Netflix dramatically changed the formula of what people expect from the Defenders when it developed its Marvel shows. Its Defenders are street-level heroes who live in a dark and somewhat grounded world. The classic Defenders team from the comics, on the other hand, operate on a much bigger scale. Initially based in the Sanctum Sanctorum and led by Doctor Strange, the Defenders battled cosmic and interdimensional threats from all over the Marvel Universe. With heavy-hitters like Hulk, Strange, Namor, and sometimes the Silver Surfer, the Defenders are easily one of Marvel’s most powerful teams. Needless to say, Strange’s Defenders are several levels above Netflix’s Defenders, a team that primarily dealt with gangsters and ninjas. The scale, team composition, and tone of a Defenders movie would be fundamentally different from the Netflix show. The only thing they would share is their name.

Marvel’s Netflix Deal Could Block A Defenders Movie

Even though a Defenders movie from Marvel Studios makes sense, it may not happen – or at least not for a while. The termination of Marvel’s partnership with Netlfix came with some consequences. It’s been reported that Marvel can’t develop any content featuring the characters from Marvel’s Netflix shows until two years after their cancellations. This means it’ll be quite a while before Marvel can use any of those characters. This may not be a problem, especially if Marvel doesn’t have actually have plans for Daredevil and company, but there is a question of whether or not this restriction applies to the Defenders name as well. Marvel doesn’t need Luke Cage or Iron Fist to build the classic Defenders, but they do need the name if they want to get a movie out of them. If this restriction does indeed limit the use of the Defenders name, it would mean that Marvel will be blocked from making The Defenders for several years.

How Marvel Can Still Use The Classic Defenders

Even if it’s true that Netflix will stop Marvel Studios from producing The Defenders, all hope may not be lost for the classic Defenders. Marvel could always find another path forward. Rights issues with Universal Studios prevented Marvel from making a solo Hulk movie, but Marvel circumvented the problem by putting the Hulk in the Avengers movies and Thor: Ragnarok instead. Marvel can do the same thing with the Defenders. Marvel can make this work by simply teaming them up in a solo movie for one of the characters.

The leading candidate would be Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. Doctor Strange 2 may include Namor, and the Hulk could be an additional surprise that would be announced later. Their histories in the comics and personality differences could lead to some great on-screen interactions. Also, It’s worth noting that Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame cultivated ties between Bruce Banner and the Sorcerer Supreme, so Doctor Strange 2 could build off this connection. If Doctor Strange 2 united the iconic trio of Strange, Hulk, and Namor on the big screen, it would allow Marvel to use the classic Defenders while simultaneously avoiding their name. Such an impressive team-up in a solo movie would make it similar to Captain America: Civil War, in terms of its scale, and make it a much bigger box office draw.