Luke Cage season 3 would have brought the hero full circle, says showrunner

Luke Cage’s Cheo Hodari Coker drops details on the show’s scrapped, third season.

Fans were disappointed to see Luke Cage end its run on such a grim note back in the summer of 2018. The show’s cancellation not only came as surprise to viewers but to the crew as well, as several scripts had already been written for the third season. Now, showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker has shed a bit of light on what was in store for Power Man and his allies.

While speaking to TV Guide, Coker teased that the 13-episode season, ironically, would have covered elements that are currently playing out in society. He also believes the overall story would have brought Luke’s character full circle:

"“It was crazy because we were hitting all these things that are happening in the press right now. I can’t on the record talk about what we had planned because, contractually, you know, I still don’t want any Marvel assassins coming out of the woodwork to try to take me out. [Laughs] But what I can say is that we had a very good season planned, and it was one that I think would have brought Luke Cage as a character full circle.”"

The season 2 finale saw Cage become a crime lord and declare himself the “Sheriff of Harlem.” This development received mostly negative reactions from fans of the show and the character, yet Coker — without going too far into detail — teases that this change wasn’t meant to be permanent:

"“You see people online that were like, “Oh my god, I turned Luke into a gangster.” They wouldn’t be [saying that] if they had the opportunity to see all three seasons and see the directions Luke would have gone.”"

One of the major criticisms aimed at the show was its handling of Misty Knight, who many believed was underutilized. Coker isn’t immune to the critique and mentions that he hoped to switch up the dynamic between Knight and Cage in season 3:

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"“Misty Knight, in terms of her being at the center of these investigations and then at the same time also dealing with the whole thing with Luke, it wasn’t a rejection as much as it was thinking, we’re bringing in Claire, what else are we gonna do with Misty? And I think relationship-wise in Season 3, we had different things that were going to lean [into] the dynamic between them that was only explored for one episode, but also giving Misty her own thing.”"

Luke Cage enjoyed its fair share of success during its run on Netflix and even holds the distinction of being the only series to crash the streaming service upon its debut. Despite its strong start, the show’s second season received more mixed reviews. By the fall of 2018, the series was canceled along with Netflix’s other Marvel dramas.

Coker may no longer be overseeing Power Man’s adventures, but recent reports suggest that Marvel Studios may have plans for Cage and the other Netflix heroes. Whether these plans involve the original actors and storylines remains to be seen.