Entertainment

Superhero super-show The Defenders gets surprise Comic-Con premiere

The first episode of the Netflix show, starring Charlie Cox, Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter and Finn Jones, was given a surprise screening in San Diego.
The first episode of the Netflix show, starring Charlie Cox, Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter and Finn Jones, was given a surprise screening in San Diego. The first episode of the Netflix show, starring Charlie Cox, Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter and Finn Jones, was given a surprise screening in San Diego.

Marvel shocked fans at Comic-Con San Diego with a surprise premiere of superhero super-show The Defenders, which will see Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist join forces.

The title stars, Charlie Cox, Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter and Finn Jones, as well as co-star Sigourney Weaver, exited the stage for the screening of the new Netflix series for around 6,500 fans on Friday.

Enthusiasts met the first episode, which did not see the heroes unite, with applause and cheers.

Marvel’s head of television Jeph Loeb had spoken about the difficulties of combining the four heroes for the show set in New York City.

“Let’s face it, we had a guy that had been in a bad Ben Affleck movie, we had a character that nobody ever heard of that drinks a lot and we had the first black superhero and we had a guy with a glowing fist and somehow they were all going to get together and do this,” he said.

Netflix made the “unprecedented” decision to go all in on the show, he said, joining in the praise being lavished on the online network at the annual convention.

During a panel discussion, Weaver said she got involved after having been a “huge fan” of the super-heroes in their own series, which is due out on August 18.

Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver (Powers Imagery/AP/PA Images)
Sigourney Weaver also stars in the Netflix show (Powers Imagery/AP)

“It’s a very interesting woman and a woman who has a lot of dealings with this lovely young lady,” she said gesturing to Elodie Yung, who plays Elektra.

“Their relationship is certainly one of the most unusual and interesting relationships I’ve had on-screen or off.”

Loeb also announced, apparently to the surprise of Jones, that season two of Iron Fist has been commissioned.

Fans were also treated to a first look at clips of The Punisher, a Netflix series that stars Jon Bernthal.