Marvel officially announced last December through their website that Mike Colter was cast to play Luke Cage for their upcoming Netflix series. Luke Cage will get his own series on the streaming network, but will first appear on A.K.A. Jessica Jones, which is the second series to hit following Daredevil.
For those who don’t read comics, Luke Cage and Jessica Jones have a baby and end up getting married in the pages of the comics. As a matter of fact, all four Marvel Netflix series ties together in the pages of the comics, as Luke Cage and Jessica Jones were once hired to be Matt Murdoch’s bodyguard in the pages of Daredevil, and the fourth series is based on Iron Fist, who teamed with Luke Cage in the comics as the original Heroes for Hire.
Marvel announced that Jessica Jones will be in the middle of an investigation in her TV series when she first meets Luke Cage, described in the press release as “enigmatic” and “a man whose past has secrets that will dramatically alter Jessica in ways she could never have imagined.”
In a recent interview, Colter said that the Netflix series was “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.”
This falls in line with the comments from Daredevil showrunner Steven DeKnight, who said that his show was not R-rated, but was as close as you can get.
Colter also said that he was every excited to take on this role, and that he is a huge fan of the comics.
“I’m excited about playing the character because I’ve read the comic books,” Colter said. “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 centre of it – and that’s what connects all of the characters to our audience members. Audience members have to feel connected with these characters, to make them relate to the character’s situations and that’s what you see with all of the Marvel characters.”
Colter is a television actor who has appeared on The Good Wife and American Horror Story: Coven. He is currently starring in the Xbox series Halo: Nightfall.
Daredevil will be the first Marvel Netflix series to hit the streaming service, with all 13 episodes hitting on April 10. This is a great way to watch the show at your own leisure and a better way to just fly through the entire series in one sitting. Charlie Cox plays Matt Murdoch/Daredevil while Vincent D’Onofrio plays his mortal enemy Wilson Fisk/The Kingpin.
There is no release date set yet for A.K.A. Jessica Jones, although a late 2015, early 2016 date is the best bet.