It’s been nearly two weeks since Iron Fist debuted all 13 episodes of its initial season on Netflix. Prior to its release, the first half of the season previewed for critics received a drubbing the likes of which is unheard of for a Marvel/Netflix property. I’ve since watched the whole season, and yeah, it wasn’t good. Setting aside my issues with the casting of the lead, Iron Fist suffers from the worst sin of any piece of entertainment: it’s boring! Worse than that, it has absolutely zero point of view. I still don’t know what Scott Buck is trying to say with this show. To that end, I wrote a post about different Asian American showrunners who could have brought a unique perspective to the Iron Fist story that the current show lacks. In response to my article on twitter, one of those writers, Steven Maeda, even revealed he actually pitched an Iron Fist concept to Marvel!
I reached out to the former X-Files and Lost writer to get the skinny on what happened to his pitch to Marvel.
I did have a chance. Pitched Marvel an Asian lead. No dice.
— Steven Maeda (@stevemaeda) March 9, 2017
KEITH: Thanks for agreeing to respond to some questions about your Iron Fist pitch to Marvel! When did you first approach them about Iron Fist?
STEVE: My agent initiated the meeting when Marvel was looking for someone to write the pilot. I’d known [head of Marvel Television] Jeph Loeb from working together on Lost.
What drew you to the show?
First, Marvel has a tremendous track record. I liked the concept and the branding of the four shows on Netflix as a unit.
Can you give any details on what your pitch consisted of? Was your intention to focus on an Asian American protagonist?
The first thing out of my mouth was to make Danny Rand an Asian American. It seemed like a no-brainer to me.
What prompted you to want to go in that direction?
I’d been looking to do a project with an Asian protagonist. I also felt it would differentiate Danny Rand from Bruce Wayne — obviously, they share a lot of similarities.
Rich white guy learns ways of the Orient, returns a superhero. @MarvelIronFist @netflix @BROADUS #AAIronFist pic.twitter.com/O5KLlnCfbw
— The Nerds of Color (@TheNerdsofColor) December 11, 2015
Why do you think your pitch was rejected?
Ultimately, they didn’t respond to my take. My pitch for an Asian American lead may have contributed to that, but it’s hard to say. This was not an egregious instance of hiring a white actor for an Asian role, or (even worse) putting a white actor in yellowface. Marvel simply did not want to stray from the source material. I think it was an opportunity to do something bold, but they declined.
There’s a lot of discussion about the lack of quality roles for AAPI actors. As a writer/producer what barriers do you encounter when trying to create those roles?
The biggest barrier involves studios and networks wanting to cast recognizable or “hot” up-and-coming actors. If you don’t give opportunities to Asian American actors, they can’t get heat. Then you hear the complaint that the Asian American actor you want doesn’t have heat. It’s a vicious circle.
How has your experience as a writer been similar or dissimilar to what AAPI actors face?
I have been fortunate in that I have not experienced overt racism on the shows I’ve worked on. I can’t speak for the covert kind.
Chloe Bennet and Ming-Na notwithstanding, do you think we’ll ever see an Asian American centered superhero movie or show?
Absolutely. It’s just a matter of time, and a studio or network willing to take a risk. Until then, we’ll just keep pounding on the door.