‘Iron Fist’ Review Score Spells Disaster: Finn Jones Blames Donald Trump

Iron Fist reviews are in, and if the review scores from Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic are any indication, the latest Netflix and Marvel superhero series is in trouble. But series’ star Finn Jones, who portrays Daniel Rand, also known as Iron Fist, knows who to blame for the disappointing reviews: President Donald Trump. According to Jones, “white American billionaires” are very much disliked in the United States these days, in part because of Trump.

Iron Fist, due to be released on Netflix on March 17, tells the story of Daniel Rand, an American billionaire and martial arts expert who returns to New York after being presumed dead for 15 years. When he arrives, he plans to take back control of his family’s company, but an enemy will test the powers of the Iron Fist.

Iron Fist takes place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, along with the Marvel films and the other Netflix TV shows: Daredevil, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage. Iron Fist is the last Marvel/Netflix show to debut before the release of The Defenders later this year, a crossover series which will bring all of Netflix’s superheroes to fight together against a common enemy, played Sigourney Weaver.

As such, Netflix was probably hoping for a good reception of their latest show, but looking at the critic ratings on review aggregation sites, the Iron Fist review score leaves much to be desired. Even though the series isn’t out yet on Netflix, reviewers received the first six episodes in advance, so they could voice their opinions before the show’s release.

On Metacritic, the current Iron Fist review score is 35 (out of 100). On Rotten Tomatoes, the “Tomatometer Score” is 12 percent (which means only 12 percent of critics have given this show a positive review), with an average rating of 4.45 out of 10.

Finn Jones, the 28-year-old actor who plays the lead character, spoke with Radio Times and tried to explain all the negative reviews Iron Fist has been getting. According to Jones, the character’s “privileged” background is to blame, as it reminds people too much of Donald Trump.

“I think the world has changed a lot since we were filming that television show. I’m playing a white American billionaire superhero, at a time when the white American billionaire archetype is public enemy number one, especially in the U.S.

“We filmed the show way before Trump’s election, and I think it’s very interesting to see how that perception, now that Trump’s in power, how it makes it very difficult to root for someone coming from white privilege, when that archetype is public enemy number one.”

Donald Trump or not, Jones also states that the show wasn’t made for the critics, it was made for the fans, who will love it according to him. He points out that reviewers only received the first six episodes, but the show should be judged as a whole.

Many of the Iron Fist reviews criticized the casting of Finn Jones, a white actor, in a series that depicts the Asian martial arts culture. In an interview with Metro, Jones addressed the issue, blaming the critics again.

“Some of the reviews we saw were seeing the show through a very specific lens, and I think when the fans of the Marvel Netflix world and fans of the comic books view the show through the lens of just wanting to enjoy a superhero show, then they will really enjoy what they see.

“I think it’s a fantastic show which is really fun and I think it stands up there with the other Defenders’ shows without a doubt.”

In comparison, Netflix’ Daredevil series has a review score of 75 for Season 1 on Metacritic, Jessica Jones has a score of 81, and Luke Cage sits in the middle with 79. It’s a far cry from Iron Fist‘s review score of 35, though keep in mind it’s a new show, so the score is based on only eight published reviews so far.

Whether the critics are to blame for the cold shoulder given to Iron Fist, or the president of The United States himself, Donald Trump, is the reason people don’t like the show, we will finally be able to watch and judge it for ourselves, this coming Friday.

[Featured Images by Netflix and Aude Guerrucci-Pool/Getty Images]