“Game of Thrones” actor Finn Jones will play the titular role in Marvel and Netflix’s upcoming superhero series “Iron Fist,” Variety has confirmed.
He’ll star as Daniel “Danny” Rand, a handsome, sophisticated and independent loner who returns to New York City after being missing for years to fight against the criminal element corrupting the city with his incredible kung-fu mastery and the ability to summon the power of the fiery Iron Fist. The series is the fourth collaboration between Marvel and Netflix, following “Daredevil,” “Jessica Jones” and the upcoming “Luke Cage.” All four characters are known as Marvel’s “street-level” heroes, who — following the launch of their solo series — will team up to form “The Defenders” in a crossover miniseries event on the streaming service.
Update, 3/17: Marvel and Netflix have officially confirmed Jones’ casting.
“Danny Rand is a very complicated character. He’s a billionaire New York Buddhist monk martial arts superhero who’s still trying to figure out what exactly that all means,” said executive producer and showrunner Scott Buck. “Finn is able to play all these levels in such an honest, revelatory way that as soon as I saw him I knew he was our Danny.”
“Finn wonderfully blends confidence with vulnerability, making him the perfect choice as he struggles to find his place in the world,” said exec producer and head of Marvel TV Jeph Loeb. “Now that we’ve found our Danny Rand, we’ve completed our principal cast for the upcoming ‘Defenders’ on Netflix and we are thrilled to continue to show audiences unexplored corners of the Marvel Universe.”
Some secrets can't be buried. #IronFist https://t.co/UexPYkIP6Y pic.twitter.com/CvPCvfia0B
— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) March 17, 2016
A former executive producer on “Dexter,” Buck was named as showrunner for “Iron Fist” back in December.
“Scott came in with a take on Iron Fist that quite simply knocked us off our feet,” said Marvel’s head of TV, Jeph Loeb, who will also serve as an exec producer on the series with Buck. “We always look for the most creative minds in the field to help us bring our heroes to life, and with Scott we’ve found someone that can deliver yet another great series in the ongoing story of ‘The Defenders.’”
Buck added, “I’ve always been drawn to writing complex, intriguing characters, and that’s what most excites me about the opportunity to bring Danny Rand and ‘Iron Fist’ to life with Marvel on Netflix.”
Jones is best known for playing Ser Loras Tyrell, brother to Natalie Dormer’s Margaery, on HBO’s hit fantasy series. He’s repped by APA, NB Management and Curtis Brown in the U.K.
Rumors of Jones’ casting were first reported by That Hashtag Show, and later confirmed by EW.
