Daredevil series will lead Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage in list of original shows as part of tie-up with comics
Netflix, the online TV service that won critical acclaim for its Kevin Spacey drama House of Cards, has signed its biggest-ever original production deal with the Disney-owned comic book firm Marvel, beginning with the adventures of Daredevil.
The latest stage in Netflix's battle to win over viewers from mainstream broadcasters, it will screen four 13-part series, each featuring different Marvel characters based in New York's Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood. The four will then be united in a concluding mini-series.
After Daredevil, struck blind as a child by a radioactive substance (and played in a 2003 film by Ben Affleck) Netflix will feature fellow superheroes Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage.
Marvel, whose recent big screen releases include Iron Man 3, Avengers Assemble and its latest sequel Thor 2, has already turned its attention to the small screen with superhero spin-off Agents of Shield, airing in the UK on Channel 4.
Netflix made its name with House of Cards, a remake of the classic BBC drama. It differentiated itself from mainstream channels by almost entirely abandoning scheduled programming, making every episode of a series available to watch at once.
Alan Fine, president of Marvel Entertainment, said the deal was "unparalleled in its scope and size" and would give viewers the "flexibility to immerse themselves how and when they want".
The live action series, which will be made by Marvel and Disney-owned ABC Studios, which will begin on Netflix in 2015, will conclude with a "dream team mini series", The Defenders – following a similar formula to the Avengers, which brought together characters from a string of films.
Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said Marvel's films were "huge favourites on our service around the world. Like Disney, Marvel is a known and loved brand that travels".
The on-demand TV service has more than 40 million subscribers around the world, with an estimated 1.5 million paying subscribers in the UK, where it launched in January last year. However, it is not known how many people watch it because it does not publish viewing figures.
Largely an archive service featuring films and television programmes originally commissioned by other broadcasters, such as US hits Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead, other original Netflix shows include prison drama Orange is the New Black and the return of the sitcom Arrested Development.
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