In a newly released featurette, Netflix takes us behind the scenes of Jessica Jones season 3, where star Krysten Ritter directs her first episode. The episode centers on Trish Walker (Rachael Taylor), Jessica’s adoptive sister, who spent season two chasing a path of self-destruction that culminated in her murdering Jessica’s estranged mother and maybe acquiring superpowers of her own.
Ritter discusses the challenges of directing, and her deep connection to the character, saying, “Jessica Jones has been a big chunk of my adult life now. I’ve learned so much, it’s been like a boot camp for me.” She goes on to discuss her choice to direct: “I wanted to have the opportunity to grow and challenge myself with my crew and my cast members. We’ve had so many amazing directors on the show who have been so generous with me, so I feel like I’ve had really great influences along the way.”
Every episode of season two of Jessica Jones was helmed by a female director. Showrunner Melissa Rosenberg said of the move, “There’s a lot of highly qualified and talented female directors out there, so what we did was simply open the door. It wasn’t like we had to give a bunch of women their first break. It was just being inclusive.”
Rosenberg said of Ritter’s work as a director, “She just fricking nailed it, man. There was no sign whatsoever that she was a first-time director. I’ve worked with directors with far more experience that were not even as near organized and specific, such unique visual stuff, really great.”
Ritter’s co-stars were equally effusive of her role as a director. Rachael Taylor said, “There is no single person that is as invested in Jessica Jones as Krysten Ritter. No other director knows what it’s like to originate a superhero character.” Eka Darville, who plays Malcolm, said that Ritter’s experience as an actor help immeasurably in directing, as did her extensive knowledge and experience with the show.
Ritter followed up by saying, “These are my people, so getting to collaborate with this crew and this cast I love so much in this new way was really exciting.” Ritter isn’t the only actor stepping in to direct: both Melissa Fumero and Stephanie Beatriz directed episodes in the latest season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
The third and final season of Marvel’s Jessica Jones drops on Netflix in 10 days, bringing with it an end to Netflix/Marvel partnership. While the relationship had its share of highs (Daredevil) and lows (Defenders), these series set a new standard for R-rated, gritty comic book series, elevating the genre in ways that will no doubt inspire shows for years to come.
Unfortunately, publicity for season three of Jessica Jones seems to be suffering from the bad blood between Netflix and Marvel. The new season has received little to no promotion, which is disappointing considering it has an ardent fan base. But perhaps Netflix doesn’t much see the point in promoting a series they’ve already canceled. The landmark feminist series deserves a better sendoff.
Jessica Jones premieres on June 14th on Netflix.
(via CBR, image: Netflix)
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Published: Jun 4, 2019 02:44 pm