'Daredevil' season 3 release date news 2016: Season delayed to make way for 'The Defenders,' 'The Punisher'?

Fans of the Netflix superhero series "Daredevil" may find it curious that more than two months after its second season was released, the possibility of a third season is still in question.

The second season of "Daredevil," which debuted in March, received much praise due, in part, to the two new characters it introduced: The Punisher, played by "The Walking Dead" alum Jon Bernthal, and Elektra, played by Elodie Yung.

Bernthal's portrayal of the vengeful mercenary The Punisher/Frank Castle was so good in fact that in April, Netflix confirmed that it was giving The Punisher its own series, with Bernthal as the titular anti-hero. With "The Punisher" rounding out Netflix's roster of Marvel superhero series, rumors began swirling that the third season of "Daredevil" might be getting shelved to make way for the new show's freshman season.

However, reports have also suggested that "Daredevil" season 3 may be taking the back seat due to the premiere of the Marvel TV miniseries "The Defenders," which brings together Netflix's Marvel superheroes, namely Daredevil (Charlie Cox), Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter), Luke Cage (Mike Colter), and Iron Fist (Finn Jones).

"The Defenders" is scheduled to air in 2017, and as Daredevil is part of the cast of the miniseries, reports suggest that production for the third season of "Daredevil" may have been delayed so that Cox could work on the Netflix ensemble.

Earlier this month, Ritter confirmed to Digital Spy that the second season of "Jessica Jones," which is currently in production, will be filmed back-to-back with "The Defenders." This means that it won't be long before the cast and crew of "The Defenders" get together to film the upcoming miniseries.

On top of that, Cox isn't the only one from the "Daredevil" team who will be kept busy by "The Defenders." "Daredevil" executive producers Doug Petrie and Marco Ramirez will serve as showrunners of the miniseries. "Daredevil" series creator Drew Goddard is set to take on the reins for that show as executive producer.

Additionally, Netflix revealed in 2015 that they plan on releasing a new Marvel series or a new season of an existing Marvel series every six months.

Speaking to the press at a Television Critics Association press tour, Netflix CCO Ted Sarandos talked about the streaming giant's plans for their Marvel shows.

"I think ideally there will be a rhythm of about every six months you'll get a new season or a new series from 'The Defenders' group," he said (via IGN). "And then they'll crossover into a combined [Defenders] season once we've launched the first season of each of the four characters."

The official release date for the third season of "Daredevil" has not been announced.