Brad Winderbaum on Making Netflix’s ‘The Defenders’ Saga Canon: “We Started to Really Lean into Some of the Mythology and Backstory”

The debut of the ‘Echo’ show introduced several new elements to the MCU. It marked the first show to premiere under the Marvel Spotlight banner and the first character-focused R-rated series. Despite featuring a relatively unknown character, it gained moderate success. What truly stood out about ‘Echo’ was the decision by the showrunners to incorporate Netflix’s ‘The Defenders Saga’ into the official MCU timeline.

Indeed, this decision might create some plot inconsistencies that could be resolved in upcoming projects. However, it was necessary. Kingpin’s significant involvement in ‘Echo,’ along with his backstory, compelled the showrunners to integrate Netflix’s shows into the MCU timeline, despite their absence from prior Disney+ projects. Brad Winderbaum elaborated on this in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

We finally said it out loud. Flash forward now to Disney+, where we are actually laying out the timeline with tiles on a screen, all of a sudden we’re like, ‘We should just do it. Let’s do it.’ It was also spurred by the redevelopment of Daredevil: Born Again, once we started to really lean into some of the mythology and backstory that was established in those Netflix shows.

If ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ is indeed a continuation of the Netflix series, it would be odd not to acknowledge all the characters and events directly connected to it. However, while there’s a general statement that all ‘Defenders’ Saga shows are now considered canon, previous reports suggest that what’s officially canon is still being determined, and there’s potential for characters to be recast. We recently discussed how if Ghost Rider were to join the MCU, it would likely be a different iteration with a new actor, despite the character previously appearing (and presumably meeting his demise) in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

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