After raising the hopes of fans that they might witness Danny Rand fight the immortal dragon Shou-Lao on "Marvel's Iron Fist," star Finn Jones now has to deliver a crippling blow: It's not going to happen.

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While the dragon, which serves as the power source for the mystical city K'un-L'un, still plays a role in Danny Rand's origin, the creature won't actually appear on screen.

“I’d love to have the budget for these shows to have a full-on 'Game of Thrones'-style dragon,” Jones, a "Game of Thrones" veteran, told Yahoo! News. “But unfortunately you know, we have budget restraints. That’s the nature of the show.”

In Marvel Comics lore, each Iron Fist must defeat Shou-Lao as part of his or her final test, and then absorb part of the dragon's power. Jones assured that Netflix series will indeed refer to the rite. “We do allude to it in Iron Fist, in a very intelligent way” he said. “And definitely in 'The Defenders' ... but I think, you know, we’ve got to be realistic.”

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Of course, Danny Rand may have bigger obstacles than Shou-Lao to overcome, on-screen and off. After first addressing criticisms of the character as a "white savior," Jones and "Iron Fist" are enduring a torrent of negative reviews for the first six episodes. The actor's response -- that “these shows are not made for critics, they are first and foremost made for the fans" -- is also drawing criticism.

“Iron Fist” centers on Danny Rand, who returns to New York City to reclaim his family company after being presumed dead for 15 years. However, when a threat emerges, he must choose between his family’s legacy and his duties as the Iron Fist. The drama introduces the final member of Marvel’s “The Defenders,” who will unite this summer with Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock, Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones and Mike Colter’s Luke Cage for an eight-episode miniseries.

Arriving Friday on Netflix, “Iron Fist” also stars Jessica Henwick, David Wenham, Jessica Stroup, Tom Pelphrey and Rosario Dawson.