Ryan Phillippe In Talks With NETFLIX AND MARVEL STUDIOS

On the Howard Stern show, actor Ryan Phillippe told Howard that he was in talks with Marvel for something on Netflix. The 40-year old actor is currently starring in ABC’s Secrets And Lies… and ABC is owned by Disney.

The major role that hasn’t been cast yet in the Netflix / Marvel deal is of course Daniel Rand / Iron Fist, Phillippe would definitely be a name to lead the fourth of the planned series. There has also been a rumor floating around about The Punisher joining the Netflix family of originals… he would make an interesting Frank Castle. Or maybe he is inline to be a villain… maybe even Bullseye for the second season of Daredevil.

Usually when an actor starts admitting he’s in talks for something, the talks are pretty far along. Hopefully we’ll hear more soon.

Source: Bleeding Cool

Mike Colter On LUKE CAGE, AKA JESSICA JONES And IRON FIST

While promoting the release of Halo: Nightfall on blu-ray and DVD, this interview with star Mike Colter appeared to slip in under the radar.  While the article primarily focused on Colter’s role as Agent Locke in ‘Nightfall’ and the forthcoming Halo 5: Guradians, the veteran actor also talked in-depth about his turn as Marvel blue-collar superhero, Luke Cage.

On his role in AKA Jessica Jones, Colter stated that Cage and Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones will have a history, prior to where the show initially drops viewers.  “I don’t want to give too much away about how much he’s involved in the ‘A.K.A Jessica Jones’ show but Jessica and Luke Cage have a history and a relationship. I don’t how much will be revealed in the actual series, but yes, I play an integral part.”

On what separates the Marvel Netflix heroes from their film counterparts in The Avengers, Colter hit the nail on the head.  “There will be action in [the Netflix shows] but these characters are trying to live normal lives, unlike some of the other characters in the Marvel cinematic universe. Those [Marvel movie characters] are first and foremost superheroes that are on a large platform. They’ve saved the world. But these [Netflix TV show] characters are really trying to focus on their neighborhood and New York City. It’s a smaller story we’re trying to tell.”

On Cage specifically, Colter says that he keeps his cards very close to the chest.  “I wouldn’t say he’s the strong and silent type — he does talk when he has something to say, it’s just that he plays things close to his chest and he’s not one to reveal too much right away. From what I’ve read, he seems to be a nuanced character with a lot of layers and a lot of secrets.”

Just like fans, Colter is also anxious to learn who Marvel will cast for Iron Fist, the final member of The Defenders team.  “I think the person that they’ll cast as Iron Fist will be someone hopefully who is not a tremendous fan. I like the idea that the actors that are cast in these iconic roles aren’t so close to the material and they’re not such fanboys that they’re wrapped up in the idea. Because the idea of it and the actual execution of it can be so far apart.”

While Colter notes that he hopes the actor cast as Iron Fist is not a comic book or Iron Fist fan per se, he did read comics when he was younger.  “I’ve dabbled. I did read comic books growing up and I did play some games but I don’t spend copious amounts of hours doing either. I’m a man of moderation. I think a little bit of everything is OK but when you do too much of anything it becomes dangerous.”

Source: C|net

First Look at David Tennant and Mike Colter in Marvel’s A.K.A. JESSICA JONES

As fans continue to devour “Marvel’s Daredevil” on Netflix, production continues on the second “Defenders” series with “Marvel’s A.K.A. Jessica Jones.” A bunch of sites have managed to collect many images from the filming of the series which give us our first reveal at former Doctor Who David Tennant as the villain Kilgrave, AKA The Purple Man. In addition, images of Mike Colter as Luke Cage have also debuted online and you can check them all out below.

Taking place after a tragic ending to her short-lived Super Hero stint, the series follows Jessica Jones (“Breaking Bad” and “Don’t Trust the B- in Apt. 23″ star Krysten Ritter) as she rebuilds her personal life and career as a detective who gets pulled into cases involving people with extraordinary abilities in New York City.

Also starring on the show are the previously-announced David Tennant as Kilgrave, Rachael Taylor as Patsy Walker, Mike Colter as Luke Cage, Carrie-Ann Moss as Harper, Eka Danville as Malcolm, Erin Moriarty as Hope, and Will Traval as a NYPD cop.

Melissa Rosenberg (“Dexter”) serves as executive producer and showrunner of the series. “Marvel’s A.K.A. Jessica Jones” is set to premiere on Netflix later this year.

Jessica Jones Set

Source: SpoilerTV

DAREDEVIL Teases "The Defenders" Plus DeKnight Wants PUNISHER Series

Netflix has released a new “The First Defender” promotional video for Marvel’s Dardevil.

The video shows some of the action we’ve seen from previous trailer, but references Daredevil as the “The First Defender.” The Defenders is the superhero crossover team that will be formed by Netflix’s Marvel heroes – Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron First. The “First Defender” line also invites comparison between Daredevil and Captain America, “The First Avenger.”

Daredevil also makes a quip about his costume being a “work in progress,” which fans will surely enjoy.

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The rise of the first Defender. #Daredevil
Posted by Marvel’s Daredevil on Wednesday, 1 April 2015

Daredevil is still a week and a half away from release and showrunner Steven S. DeKnight is already thinking about what other Marvel characters would fit into dark, Netflix corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Turns out Frank Castle, the Punisher, is on top of that list. DeKnight thinks a Punisher television series, with an R-rated tone, is something that could work well on Netlfix.

“I’ve been a huge fan of the Punisher comics for years,” DeKnight tells SciFiNow.”I’d love to see him get his due on a platform like this. Nothing would delight me more than to see the Punisher get his own show and maybe we could convince Marvel to go Hard-R rating. If any character deserves an R rating, it’s the Punisher.”

There have been previous attempts to bring the Punisher to live action. Dolph Lundgren starred in the 1989 The Punisher movie, and Thomas Jane took up the role in 2004’s The Punisher and 2008’s Punisher: War Zone. The films didn’t achieve the success the studios involved with them had hoped for, and they allowed the film rights to revert back to Marvel. That means that if Marvel thinks this is as good an idea as DeKnight does, it’s a possibility.

Source: SciFiNow

Cheo Hodari Coker Is MARVEL’S LUKE CAGE Showrunner

Netflix & Marvel Television announced today that Cheo Hodari Coker will serve as executive producer and showrunner of the anticipated series, “Marvel’s Luke Cage.” Coker is writing the first two episodes of the series that will premiere in 2016, everywhere that Netflix is available.

Most recently, Coker served as a co-executive producer on the second season of “Ray Donovan,” and prior to that was a supervising producer on the critically-acclaimed, fourth season of the drama “SouthLAnd.” Coker was a part of the “SouthLAnd” team that earned the show a 2012 Peabody Award. Coker also garnered a 2013 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Writing for a Dramatic Series for his work on that show. Coker’s feature film credits include Fox Searchlight’s rap biopic “Notorious.” He authored the book “Unbelievable: The Life, Death, and Afterlife of The Notorious B.I.G.” as well. Coker started his writing career in journalism and was a staff writer at the Los Angeles Times and contributed to VIBE, Rolling Stone, Essence, among other publications. He is a graduate of Stanford University.

It was previously announced that Mike Colter (“The Good Wife,” “American Horror Story: Coven”) will play the charismatic lead character, Luke Cage, in the series.

“Marvel’s Luke Cage” is produced by Marvel Television in association with ABC Studios for Netflix.

Marvel’s Luke Cage is the third in a series of Netflix shows that Marvel TV is developing, and will be followed by Marvel’s Iron Fist (presumably premiering in the latter half of 2016), and then the team-up miniseries Marvel’s The Defenders, which will bring together the characters from all of the Netflix shows into one Avengers-style story arc.

Source: Marvel.com

Mike Colter Talks LUKE CAGE And His Link With The MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE

Promoting the upcoming home video release of Halo: Nightfall, actor Mike Colter shared a few details on his upcoming turn as the Marvel street-level hero Luke Cage in Netflix’s Jessica Jones. According to Colter, Cage has super strength and bulletproof skin just like he does in the pages of Marvel Comics but in Jessica Jones, Cage operates in secrecy.  “Marvel actually gives you a special training class in how not to say too much in interviews [laughs]. We’re in the middle of shooting AKA Jessica Jones and Luke Cage is a very interesting character who just happens to have super strength and unbreakable skin. He’s a neighborhood hero, very much linked to New York and Jessica Jones. It’s all part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe but Luke Cage is a darker, grittier, more tangible character than Iron Man or Thor. He likes to keep things close to his chest, operate on the hush-hush. He has these abilities but he’s not sure how and when to use them. He’s a very nuanced character.”

Colter will be seen as Luke Cage in Netflix’s 13-episode Marvel-Netflix miniseries, Jessica Jones, which stars Krysten Ritter as the titular character Filming is currently underway and the series is expected to stream in late-2015/early-2016.

Source: The List

Mike Colter Talks Playing Marvel’s LUKE CAGE

While promoting the DVD/Blu-ray release of Halo: Nightfall, actor Mike Colter spoke to IGN about playing Luke Cage in this year’s Netflix series “Marvel’s A.K.A. Jessica Jones” and then his own solo show.

“It’s geared towards an adult audience, which is something that will be different from the Marvel Cinematic Universe that you’ve seen before on the big screen,” says Colter. “I’m excited about playing the character because I’ve read the comic books. They’re very detailed, gritty; the world they’ve written in the comic books is very clear. Marvel does a fantastic job about bringing human stories – because you’re telling big stories with a heart at the center of it – and that’s what connects all of the characters to our audience members.”

That grittiness will carry into all four New York-centric series Netflix and Marvel Entertainment have planned, starting with this April’s “Daredevil,” through “Jessica Jones,” “Iron Fist” and “Luke Cage,” all leading into the eventual team-up show “The Defenders.” Colter is excited about the possibilities in playing the hero with unbreakable skin and superhuman strength, who in the comic books eventually forms a duo with Iron Fist and marries Jessica Jones.

“What I’m most excited about is touching on what makes him tick,” Colter says. “It feels good to get a character that has such a story, background, and history. And when I look at the scripts, I’m really pleased with it because it’s a slow-burn; there’s nothing happening really fast that gets ahead of itself. We have a more gritty, focused story on our heroes and characters that live in New York City.”

From the character’s debut in 1972’s “Luke Cage, Hero for Hire” he was designed to emulate the Blaxploitation films of the era, but Colter doesn’t see race as playing a huge part in his interpretation.

“I’m a black male who’s playing a character who has historically been black,” he declares. “The approach with the character for me is more about the human qualities and the things that make Luke Cage tick. And the writers have to then decide to bring in the race of the character, if there’s an angle there. But I don’t look at it as something I have to prep differently for, because I am what I am and I approach the characters as they have to then be played by me, Mike Colter – the actor who happens to be black. It’s more of an aside, rather than something I take on by the horns. It doesn’t really factor for me at all.”

Source: IGN