Social Media Interest Dropped Dramatically Before 'Luke Cage' and 'Iron Fist' Second Seasons

When Marvel Television first announced their partnership with Netflix, fans were excited to see popular street level characters getting mature narratives in series like Luke Cage and Iron Fist.

But interest in those series declined between the first and second seasons, and both were cancelled in the last two weeks due to failed negotiations between the two companies. And it seems like the writing is on the wall that more cancellations could be on the way, according to data Crimson Hexagon.

The consumer-insights firm provided data to Business Insider, who wrote a report on the social media interest of the cancelled Marvel series from their first season premieres and beyond, finding that fans were not as excited about the shows' returns.

Since Netflix does not release their own data on streaming and viewing habits from their users, this is some of the only data we have to go on. But social media numbers do show how much interest these shows are generating.

And those numbers do not look good for the Heroes for Hire. When Luke Cage Season 1 dropped on this year, Instagram and Twitter users made over 300,000 posts about the Mike Colter-led series. But when the second season premiered earlier in June, the show generated less than 50,000 posts.

Iron Fist generated significantly less interest on both counts, but experienced a dramatic drop-off between seasons as well. The first season of the series generated 120,000 social media posts when it premiered on Netflix in April 2017, while the second season only generated 20,000 for its September debut.

In comparison, Daredevil and Jessica Jones have experienced some drop off from year to year, but both have generated more significant social media interest.

The first season of Jessica Jones generated nearly 300,000 Instagram and Twitter posts for its November 2015 debut, while Season 2 was nearly cut in half but still had nearly 150,000 posts in March.

Daredevil Season 1 generated 275,000 social media posts for Season 1 in April 2015, and 200,000 for its second season with Punisher and Elektra in March 2016. The latest season only just debuted, so that data is still incomplete.

Of course, social media impressions aren't exactly the same as hard viewing numbers, but it does provide some insight into how popular the shows are and how much interest they are generating. It seems like Luke Cage and Iron Fist just weren't doing enough to justify their renewals. Maybe a Heroes for Hire series would fare a better chance, if Disney and Marvel Television decide to pursue that angle.