Death in Paradise cast break silence on Danny John-Jules's exit: "We're all dispensable"

The cast of Death in Paradise are speaking out for the first time exclusively to Digital Spy about the departure of their long-time co-star Danny John-Jules from the show.

John-Jules became the latest in a revolving door of exits from the island-based mystery series at the end of its seventh season, saying that he needed "a bit more razzmatazz". Sure enough, he soon joined Strictly Come Dancing.

In our recent chat with the cast, Ardal O'Hanlon – who was a replacement for series lead Kris Marshall (who actually replaced Ben Miller too!) – suggested that Death in Paradise's ever-changing cast line-up was part of its appeal.

"We’re all dispensable," he said. "Absolutely, when I heard that Danny was leaving, I thought, 'Hmm. How will that play? How will the audience take that?' Because he’s a very popular character in the show, and he’s been there since the start as well, so there’s that.

"But we’ve seen time and time again that the show survives these cast changes. It’s robust. I think [his replacement] Shyko’s going to do a great job in replacing Danny. So I don’t have any great fears about that, or worries about that, at all."

As mentioned, Danny's character Officer Dwayne Myers will be replaced on the Saint Marie police squad by Shyko Amos as the police commissioner's niece Ruby Patterson.

Amos said of joining the show: "To replace a character that is so loved on the show... on one level you're like, 'Oh God, I've got to fill these massive shoes of somebody that the audience just adored', but on another level, because I'm the total opposite – a woman, young – that meant I didn't have the pressure to emulate, I could just really be fresh and do what I do."

Still, there does seem to be a melancholy to have lost Danny John-Jules, since his character had remained constant on Death in Paradise throughout all the changes to its leading men.

"It felt a bit weird [to lose Danny], because he's been here since the very beginning," cast member Josephine Jobert (aka DS Florence Cassell) admitted.

"His character was very strong and very important. But she is perfect. It's the best choice – her, and her character. People are going to love her, for sure. It feels like she's been on the show forever."

Shyko Amos concurred: "I think they'll always probably miss him, because he was so integral to the show, but I also think because they've gone quite different with Ruby, I don't think it will be a competition."

"It's like [the change] between Kris [Marshall] and Ardal. No-one will forget Kris, but Ardal is so brilliant," Josephine added.

Death in Paradise returns to BBC One on Thursday, January 10 at 9pm.

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Cameron K McEwan

Cameron McEwan is a freelance writer specialising in movies and TV.

Justin Harp

Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.