David Farnor | On 20, Oct 2018

Luke Cage has been cancelled by Netflix after two seasons.

The superhero series, which stars Mike Colter as the eponymous bulletproof man, returned earlier this year for its second run. It saw Colter reprise his role as Power Man, joined by Annabella Sciorra as dangerous underworld player Rosalie Carbone, Simone Missick as tough cop Misty Knight, Theo Rossi as slippery gangster Hernan ‘Shades’ Alvarez and Alfre Woodard as Harlem’s queen, Mariah Dillard.

Cheo Hodari Coker also returned as showrunner, taking the series into interesting new territory, with Luke becoming a celebrity on the streets of Harlem, his reputation as bulletproof as his skin. That is, until Bushmaster (Mustafa Shakir), a tough gangland veteran, steps up to go face-to-face with Harlem’s hero.

While the series has won acclaim for its rich themes, social commentary and diverse cast, Netflix and Marvel have now confirmed that Luke Cage will not have a Season 3.

“Unfortunately, Marvel’s Luke Cage will not return for a third season. Everyone at Marvel Television and Netflix is grateful to the dedicated showrunner, writers, cast and crew who brought Harlem’s Hero to life for the past two seasons, and to all the fans who have supported the series,” the companies said in a joint statement.

Variety reports that talks for a third season took place, but the streaming giant decided it would not be feasible. The news comes hot on the heels of Netflix’s similar decision to cancel Iron Fist, another of its Marvel series, after two seasons. The move seems to cut ties between Disney (which owns Marvel) and Netflix further, as the House of Mouse prepares to launch its own rival streaming service.

Nonetheless, the relationship is continuing: with Disney producing the Hell’s Kitchen series (which include Daredevil and Jessica Jones, plus The Punisher spin-off and The Defenders crossover series) for Netflix, the companies have already reassured fans that Disney’s streaming plans will not affect those programmes, as Netflix would be the one to decide whether to order more seasons (or not). Indeed, Jessica Jones is currently preparing for Season 3, while Daredevil has just debuted its third run. The Punisher will also be returning for Season 2. The Defenders Season 2 is apparently not on the cards, but Netflix has recently dismissed talk of it never coming back in the future, teasing that the crossover might be with different characters; Luke Cage and Iron Fist’s cancellation, then, may well be paving the way for a Heroes for Hire (Luke Cage and Iron Fist’s Danny Rand) or Daughters of the Dragon (Iron Fist’s Colleen Wing and Luke Cage’s Misty Knight) series. As with Luke Cage’s surprise fate, though, the exact plans for Marvel and Netflix’s future projects is anybody’s guess.

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