Jessica Jones & The Punisher rights head back to Marvel Studios

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

The time has finally come! After being in the arms of Netflix when the streamer paid licensing fees to air their Marvel shows, Jessica Jones and The Punisher are finally back in the hands of Marvel Studios.

Jessica Jones and The Punisher were two massively popular shows on the platform courtesy of Marvel along with Daredevil, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage. Back in 2019, all of the shows were canceled because Netflix had beefed up their own original programming that they owned outright and they no longer wanted to pay the licensing fee to Marvel in order to run them. Daredevil, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage were actually the first to announce cancellations which occurred in late 2018 while Jessica Jones and The Punisher followed in 2019 as their final seasons wrapped up on Netflix.

Fans wanted Marvel Studios to rush in and save all the shows as they were launching the Disney+ streaming service in late 2019 but the process wouldn't be that easy if that was a move Marvel wanted to make. The rights to all of the shows were kept with Netflix for two years after the announcement date of their cancellation, per the deal they signed with Marvel, so that time would need to lapse before Marvel could make a move on them. That time has now passed for all the shows now that Jessica Jones and The Punisher have gone beyond their two-year threshold so all five of the properties are back under the Marvel Studios banner.

What that all means at the moment, is unclear. Rumors have circulated that Daredevil star Charlie Cox was spotted on the Spider-Man 3 set but it has not been officially confirmed. Jon Bernthal, star of The Punisher, has previously expressed interest in returning to the role but admits he hasn't been a part of any discussions on when or if that will happen. Similar rumors circulate around Krysten Ritter and Jessica Jones popping up in future MCU projects but again, these are just rumors. Mike Colter stated recently that there has been radio silence about a return as Luke Cage and he's now focused on his CBS series, Evil. Finally, Finn Jones, who was tasked to take on Iron Fist, recently discussed scrapped plans for season 3 and he seems like he'd be interested in returning but the overall feedback on his series may result in a recast and reboot if they choose to explore that character again. 

Earlier this year, Kevin Feige was asked about the Netflix Marvel shows and the characters making a return and he gave a typical coy Feige answer by saying "Everything is on the board. That's one of the fun things about the comics is that characters would appear and disappear and come and go. All of it is inspiration for the future. There are some great characters and actors from those shows."

Feige is right, these are great characters and some solid actors brought them to life and it would be a shame if they don't get another shot to continue those stories. They definitely had more places they could go and everyone involved in those shows were very happy to be a part of them. I have a feeling they would love to come back if they could. Let's make it happen, Marvel!

Do YOU want to see Jessica Jones and The Punisher continue in the MCU?