Last month, Netflix released the first season of Jessica Jones, the second of four original series that will culminate in 2017 with The Defenders miniseries. Unlike the comic book Defenders, this version of the team will consist of Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Daredevil, and Iron Fist.

For the last few months, there have been a few rumors that the assembled Defenders could make an appearance in the two-part film, Avengers: Infinity War; which will essentially pit everyone in the Marvel Cinematic Universe against Thanos. But according to Avengers: Infinity War co-director Anthony Russo, putting the Defenders in play won’t be as simple as originally thought.

“It’s complicated,” said Russo during a new interview with Super Interessante at Comic Con Experience Brazil. “When we start to serialize the telling of stories it’s difficult. You have to have a lot of control and focus on the course of history. The films are controlled by a group led by Kevin Feige, so they function as a unit. Other products, even if they are from Marvel, are controlled by others. Then there is the possibility of a crossover, but it’s more complicated.”

“It is a smaller scale version of the problem that exists when remembering that Fox holds the rights to some of Marvel’s most popular characters, as does Sony and others.” continued Russo. “As storytellers, we only have control over what happens in Marvel movies, but everything is possible, Spider-Man (whose rights were held by Sony) became possible!”

There have been a lot of rumors about schisms between Feige’s Marvel Studios projects on the theatrical side, and Marvel TV, which is essentially a separate entity under the same corporate umbrella. But this is one of the first times that anyone at Marvel has equated the relationship between the two divisions as equivalent to the rocky relationship between Marvel and Fox!

Up to this point, the Marvel films have largely ignored the television series, although Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Daredevil, and Jessica Jones have all referenced events from the films. Feige has previously expressed his admiration for Marvel’s Netflix series. So the hope of an eventual crossover between the two sides of Marvel’s live-action production companies is far from over. However, it does seem to be more “complicated” than it needs to be.

Should the Defenders show up at all in Avengers: Infinity War? Unleash your thoughts in the comment section below!

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HT: Super Interessante & ComicBookMovie.com
Image: Shelby Avila