In an interview with Hitfix, posted today, Melissa Rosenberg (Twilight screenwriter), who, as we've been following, is reportedly writing and executive producing the Jessica Jones TV series, has confirmed that not only will Luke Cage be "worked into the series" (which Marvel Head of Television Jeph Loeb revealed at Comic-Con earlier this year), but he'll in fact be a primary series character, and will be 1 of 3 central characters in the narrative – the other 2 being Jessica Jones (of course), and Carol Danvers (better known as Ms. Marvel, one of the most powerful members of The Avengers).
For those just learning about this, here's a quickie recap…
The new series will be titled, AKA Jessica Jones, the former superhero who retires after suffering post-traumatic disorder and decides to become a private detective;
Marvel is prepping a live-action TV series based on the Marvel character.
So whats the connection to Luke Cage, you ask? Jessica Jones is a white female superhero, so, why should we care here on S&A? Well, comic book geeks will know that Jessica Jones was later known as Jessica Campbell Jones Cage. The last name should give you a hint as to where this is going…
Jessica Jones eventually marries Luke Cage, the African American superhero, whose name has been mentioned quite a bit on this site in recent months, with the likes of Idris Elba, Tyrese Gibson and Isaiah Mustafa campaigning to play the character in a big screen adaptation (who knows if that'll ever happen). In the comic book series, the couple had a daughter as well.
And so my main interest here is has been just how involved Luke Cage will be in this series; if Marvel planned to focus strictly on Jones' life prior to meeting Cage, meaning he'd likely be a peripheral character.
I can now say that he'll be a central character; though the series is still be called AKA Jessica Jones, so…
From Hitfix:
Based on Brian Michael Bendis comic series "Alias," the TV show would center on Jessica Jones a former superhero under the code name Jewel who has decided to give up tights and spotlight. Rosenberg confirmed the show would also have principal parts for Luke Cage (also known as Power Man and her eventual husband in the comics) as well as Carol Danvers (better known as Ms. Marvel, on of the most powerful members of The Avengers). The former "Dexter" scribe and producer confirmed the potential TV series would absolutely take place in the larger "cinematic" Marvel Universe that has been established by films such as "Iron Man" and "Thor,"" but admitted they can't reference everything. "It's very tricky navigation there. You can't mention one guy because Fox has the rights to that guy and Universal has the rights to the other one. There are a lot of boundaries on who you can and can't use," Rosenberg reveals. "I had Jessica Jones and Luke Cage and Carol Danvers [for the pilot script]. Basically, I wanted those three guys — then I would have a series."
Rosenberg added that the series is very real, the pilot script is done, and now they're just waiting for a green light to shoot it.
So… how about that? We will likely see Luke Cage as a principal (though supporting character) on a TV series centered on the woman he married (also a superhero), before we actually get to see Luke Cage in a movie franchise or TV series of his own.