One lingering question fans have about Jessica Jones after her long-awaited return has been answered. Krysten Ritter finally reprised her iconic Marvel role after a seven-year absence in Episode 6 of Daredevil: Born Again Season 2. Her return included a time jump since Jessica's last appearance in Jessica Jones Season 3, and this came with its fair share of surprises.
The most significant reveal was that Jessica is now a mother to a young daughter named Danielle. While the girl's name instantly set off alarm bells for Marvel Comics fans, Danielle's father was not named during the episode, leaving many wondering who Jessica had settled down with since the Netflix series' end. Daredevil: Born Again showrunner Dario Scardapane has since confirmed the identity of Danielle's father in an interview with Nexus Point News, revealing "it's pretty obvious who that is."
In Marvel Comics, Jessica is known to have a daughter (who later holds a significant Marvel mantle) with fellow Defender, Luke Cage. These comments from Scardapane confirm that Luke Cage is the obvious answer to Danielle's parentage, setting up Mike Colter to reprise his Marvel role in the future.
The showrunner added that "Jessica's extended family" and "having Luke [Cage's] world expand as we move forward" were always part of the team's intentions:
Dario Scardapane: "Well, in the story that we’re presently talking about, Danielle’s father, it’s pretty obvious who that is. And that connection has echoes through the corner of the world that we’re playing in...
So, without giving too much away – a lot has already been speculated on – having Jessica’s extended family and having Luke’s world expand as we move forward has been part of the plan since day one."
The finale of Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 confirmed this to be true, as Luke Cage made a special cameo at the end of the season. Danielle referred to Luke Cage as her father, running up to him as he came home from his trip (working for the season's villain, Mr. Charles).
Set photos for Daredevil: Born Again Season 3 reveal that Luke Cage (and his Heroes For Hire partner Iron Fist) will have a major part to play.
In the Netflix saga, Luke Cage and Jessica Jones had an on-again-off-again relationship. They were initially a romantic couple in Jessica Jones Season 1, although they split up due to the baggage they carried about Jessica being forced to kill Luke's first wife under Kilgrave's mind control. They then had separate love interests in their respective Netflix shows, though they worked together again in The Defenders, where their bond remained strong.
Daredevil: Born Again still has some backstory to cover to explain exactly how Jessica and Luke reconciled, but the inclusion of Danielle Cage-Jones is a confirmation that the two became a couple once again at some point during the seven-year time gap.
Jessica Jones and Luke Cage Are Marvel's Latest Power Couple
With Marvel's Netflix shows being cut short, fans were unsure whether Jessica Jones and Luke Cage would ever achieve the power-couple status on-screen that they have in Marvel Comics. But Daredevil: Born Again is making good on the duo's comic lore, using the time gap between the sagas to cement them as parents.
At present, Luke Cage is absent from Daredevil: Born Again, so it is unclear exactly where he and Jessica stand and what their relationship looks like. However, that will likely change in Daredevil: Born Again Season 3, with all four Defenders heroes expected to reunite, which should fill in some of the blanks in the current dynamic between Jessica and Luke.
In the comics, Danielle is also known to inherit the powers of both her super-powered parents, making her super strong and bulletproof. Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 confirmed that giving birth has affected Jessica's powers, rendering them inaccessible at certain times, which may be an issue she has to deal with throughout the show.
Setting up Luke and Jessica as parents also gives them an interesting new dynamic and character arcs to explore in Daredevil: Born Again Season 3, and may even warrant exploration in their own show, should Marvel decide to expand its current roster and give the Defenders their individual series back.
