How Old Each Marvel Defenders Character Is In The MCU

Here are the ages of each of the main characters of the Defenders Saga. Up until very recently, the former Netflix shows have only been tenuously connected to the wider MCU, and going right along with that, there usually wasn’t a lot of focus given to the exact points in time in which the stories took place. The answers to these questions are there, though, and with them comes the ability to figure out how old all the leads are supposed to be.

The Defenders Saga was the subsection of Marvel Television that was comprised of the six MCU shows originally made for Netflix: Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, and The Punisher. Following Marvel Television’s shutdown in 2019 and its official conclusion with the final season of Agents of SHIELD, it appeared that the Defenders Saga was done and the future of the shows and its characters would be up in the air once their licenses on Netflix expired and Marvel Studios started focusing on the Disney+ shows. However, thanks to cameos from Daredevil and Kingpin in Spider-Man: No Way Home and Hawkeye, respectively, and all of the shows being moved to Disney+, a new surge of interest in the Defenders Saga has been sparked among fans, both new and old.

The following are the ages of all of the protagonists of the Defenders Saga. While each series had its own set of protagonists, only the ages of the principal leads of each show will be discussed. Though this list will only discuss their ages up until their most recent appearances in the MCU, as anything after that is unclear, the team incorporates a range of different experience levels and generations.

How Old Daredevil Is

The first protagonist of the Defenders Saga being discussed is, naturally, the protagonist of the first entry into the Defenders Saga, Matt Murdock a.k.a Daredevil. Like other characters on this list, Matt’s exact birthday isn’t given in the show, but by combining details across various episodes of Daredevil, such as how Maggie Grace had been a nun for about 30 years after Matt’s conception, it can be concluded that Matt was born in early 1985. That, combined with Daredevil season one being stated to take place shortly before Avengers: Age of Ultron, would mean that Matt was around 30 years old at the beginning of Daredevil and 32 at the end of it, since the show ended in late 2017, in-universe. Following that, assuming that Matt wasn’t a victim of the Blip, he would then age another seven years by the time he appeared in Spider-Man: No Way Home to be 39 years old.

How Old Jessica Jones Is

Jessica Jones sitting down on a subway car in Jessica Jones

Jessica Jones is the protagonist of the series of the same name, and with Jessica Jones season 3 having been released in June 2019, its conclusion marked the end of the Defenders Saga on Netflix. In Jessica Jones season 1, episode 12, it was established that Jessica was 14 when her family died in a car crash in April 2000, meaning that she was born in either 1985 or 1986, and with Jessica Jones season 1 taking place at around the same time as Daredevil season 1, that would put her between 29 and 30 at her debut. That same car crash is established to have happened 17 years prior to season 2, and with season 3 taking place the following year, that would mean that Jessica Jones season 3 concludes sometime in 2018 with Jessica being 32 or 33.

How Old Luke Cage Is

Luke Cage, played by Evil star Mike Colter, was the third protagonist of the Defenders Saga and, subsequently, the first African American lead in an MCU project. In Luke Cage season 1, episode 10, a newspaper article from May 1997 stated that Luke was 17 when he was being tried for stealing a car, meaning that Luke was likely born sometime in the spring of 1980. Luke Cage season 1 takes place in 2015, the same year as his appearance on Jessica Jones, so he would be 35 at the time, and with his final appearance in the Defenders Saga being a cameo in Jessica Jones season 3, which took place in 2018, that would make Luke about 38 in his final appearance. Interestingly, Colter himself is slightly older than the character he portrays, having been nearly 40 when Luke Cage season 1 came out.

How Old Iron Fist Is

Danny Rand assuming an attack position in Iron Fist

Danny Rand a.k.a Iron Fist was the last protagonist of the Defenders Saga to be introduced before Marvel's The Defenders. Danny’s family was in a plane crash 15 years before the show, and the dates for both of them, in addition to Danny’s age, can be gathered through another character, Ward Meachum. In Iron Fist season 1, episode 9, it’s established that Ward was born in 1986, and with the series premiere establishing that he was 15 when the Rands disappeared, that would mean that the plane crash happened in 2001, the show starts in 2016, and Danny, who was stated to be 10 at the time, was born in 1991 and was about 25 at the beginning of the show. Additionally, Iron Fist season 2 is meant to take place between The Defenders and Daredevil season 3, when Matt was believed to be dead, meaning that it should have taken place in 2017 at the latest, thus making Danny about 26 by his final appearance.

How Old The Punisher Is

Frank Castle a.k.a The Punisher is the final protagonist of the Defenders Saga. Promotional material for The Punisher revealed Frank to be 35, and with the first episode referring to an event from Daredevil season 2, which took place in 2015, as happening a year ago, that would mean that The Punisher season 1 takes place in 2016 and Frank was born in 1981. Season 2, episode 11 also shows an ID that became valid in January 2018, meaning that The Punisher season 2 takes place in 2018 and Frank is about 37 at the end of the series. Former president of Marvel Television Jeph Loeb stated that every show with new content released between April 2018 and April 2019 took place before the Blip in Avengers: Infinity War, so that further gives credence to The Punisher season 2, and various other shows in the Defenders Saga, taking place in 2018 at the latest.

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