Doctor Who's Sacha Dhawan opens up about Marvel's Iron Fist axing

Doctor Who star Sacha Dhawan has opened up exclusively to Digital Spy about the shock cancellation of his previous series Marvel's Iron Fist.

Netflix culled Iron Fist as an omen that it would ultimately drop all of its Defenders series while Marvel focused its efforts on Disney+, leaving some of its shows without proper endings.

When we recently chatted with Dhawan — who was a recurring cast member in Iron Fist as Danny Rand's nemesis Davos (aka Steel Serpent) — we asked if he knew anything about proposed storylines for his character if a third season went ahead as originally planned.

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Netflix

"There were some early talks that maybe Davos got arrested, and we assume he's going to be sent to prison, but he kind of insinuated to Danny Rand at that time that putting him in prison or locking him away was not really going to stop anything," the actor recalled.

"He'd already kind of planted the seed – as in, even if he was in prison, he was going to continue indoctrinating people, and spreading the cause, and even getting people to do his work."

Asked how the show's cancellation impacted him personally, Dhawan explained: "Yeah, I was really sad, in a way, because I absolutely… I loved the cast and the crew, and I loved learning the martial arts.

"Physically changing for the role was amazing, and I'd happily do it again.

Linda Kallerus/Netflix

"But at the same time, I was also kind of happy to have had the experience, and it just meant I was able to do other things, and take on new projects.

"But there is a fear when you get that call that says it's not happening again – and you’re like, 'Oh my God, I'm not going to work again.'

"But since then, I've done Doctor Who and Dracula, and I've just finished a new series for Hulu.

"I guess, in a good way, it's allowed me to do other stuff."

doctor who 'the timeless children' the master sacha dhawan

BBC

Dhawan also hasn't given up hope of playing a completely different character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"I think I'd definitely love to work with Marvel again, especially now that the platform's moved to Disney+," he told us.

"I'm really excited to see what they do. But I think I'd maybe love to do another character – another comic-book character that’s completely different to Davos."

Doctor Who airs series finale 'The Timeless Children' on Sunday (March 1) at 6.50pm on BBC One in the UK and BBC America at 8pm ET in the US.

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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.

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After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.

In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.

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