Supervillain role proved to be Marvel-ous for British star Sacha Dhawan

Sacha Dhawan in Marvel’s Iron Fist. Courtesy Marvel Television

When Avengers' star Anthony Mackie, aka Falcon from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, spoke to The National at the ­Middle East Film and Comic Con recently, it was clear the actor was a big fan of his character in the Marvel comics long before he was cast in the role in the movies.

Over in the Marvel TV universe, British actor Sacha Dhawan – who plays villain The Steel Serpent, aka Davos, in Netflix's Iron Fist, alongside Finn Jones as the titular martial arts hero – had less of a fan-boy connection to the character.

"I hadn't read any of the Iron Fist comics so I was a Marvel 'virgin' you could say," he says. "I'm glad I hadn't, to be honest, as I didn't want to have any preconceived ideas about the character. Marvel also gave me free reign to trust my instinct when it came to Davos.

"As much as Iron Fist is based on the comics, the series is very ­different, and that's what really excited me about the project."

Dhawan might have been in unfamiliar territory, but his CV shows he is more than capable. An impressive list of key roles include Akthar in Alan Bennet and Nicholas Hytner's The History Boys, Paul Jatri in acclaimed BBC drama Last Tango in Halifax, and the doctor in The Lady in the Van, another Bennett/Hytner project.

Dhawan admits, though, that despite a hefty CV of British TV and film hits, the Marvel TV Universe was a whole new level.

“I always thought working for the Netflix/Marvel Universe was unattainable – it was literally a world away,” he says.

He remains modest about his achievements, though, and ­resists overblown terms.

“I wouldn’t say I’m a ‘global superstar’, but that’s a very nice compliment,” he says. “I’ve been in the industry long enough now to remain grounded and true to myself, as this is what really matters. To me, anyway.

“My life is pretty much the same but it’s a blessing working with both Netflix and Marvel. They have such a huge following, which inevitably brings you to the ­attention of people.”

In fact, Dhawan says that despite super-powered nature of his new Marvel role, the actual production process is a remarkably grounded affair.

"Once you step into the world, everyone is so down to earth, and committed, you just get on with the task at hand," he says. "I was blown away by how well-oiled the Marvel machine is. They have the same team of people working on all the Netflix/Marvel Defenders series [Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist] – and they're not small shows, they're big and immensely ambitious.

“No matter how big a challenge a script brings, it just doesn’t seem to faze them.”

Dhawan has twice worked with Bennet and Hytner, giants of the British film and theatre world and he clearly enjoyed the experience.

“It was such a joy [working with them], and I will always be eternally grateful for their generosity,” he says. “They’re both very dear friends of mine and I hold such respect for the pair of them.

“Nick [Hytner]’s new Bridge Theatre Company will be opening very soon, and I can’t wait to see what he does. Both Nick and Alan have had huge impacts on the ­industry, whether that be through their own work or their work­ ­together.”

Much like his grounded attitude towards his recent Marvel exploits, however, Dhawan says he wasn’t fazed about working in such illustrious company.

"I feel we, as The History Boys, got on with them so well because we were too young and naive at the time to treat them any differently because of who they were," he says.

• Iron Fist is on Netflix now