Could Lewis Tan have been the MCU’s biggest star? The actor reveals that he lost out on two major roles in the franchise: Shang-Chi and the Iron Fist himself.
Lewis Tan is a name that should be familiar to comic fans. He’s had quite a few roles across comic book projects. He was Shatterstar in Deadpool 2, Cole Young in Mortal Kombat, and even played a small role in the MCU as Zhou Cheng in Iron Fist. However, he’s yet to have a truly starring role in a major blockbuster franchise.
Yet it seems he may have been closer than a lot of people think. When speaking on his role as Shatterstar in the MCU, the actor revealed that he actually came close to playing Danny Rand during the initial auditions for Iron Fist. However, missing the role was seemingly a blessing- as the small role he did have got a lot of attention.
“You never know in the film industry,” Tan told Comicbook.com. “You do an audition, you do a callback, and a director’s meeting. When they start to ask about your schedule, that’s usually when you are getting down to the final mix. I would say it was close. I don’t know how close, but it was close. Everything happens for a reason. The timing just wasn’t right for some reason.”
“It ended up being a blessing because the character I did end up playing got a lot of attention. I know some fans were pushing for me to be that character and some fans were pushing against it.”
Lewis Tan Almost Played Shang-Chi
However, it wasn’t just the role of Iron Fist that Lewis Tan lost out on. The actor also just barely missed playing another major role in the MCU: Shang-Chi. The actor reveals that he was the finalist alongside Simu Liu. He also adds that, after losing the part, he hasn’t put much thought in potentially joining the film series as its sequel nears.
“I auditioned for the first Shang-Chi and I got close to getting that role, too. It came down to me and Simu Liu and maybe one other person. Simu got the job, and that’s his baby.
“I haven’t really thought about (being in the sequel) too much. They did such a killer job on the first one. I know a lot of those guys on that action team. Andy Cheng, who I worked with on Into the Badlands… Shang-Chi is Simu’s baby. I will let him handle that.”
It’s certainly interesting to imagine how different projects like Shang-Chi and Iron Fist could have been if Lewis Tan landed the role over Simu Liu or Finn Jones. Of course, this doesn’t mean that Lewis Tan is out of the running for an MCU project in the future either. And with the actor set to make his return to Mortal Kombat next year, his starpower will have yet another chance to shine.
Mortal Kombat II is set to release May 8, 2026. Stay tuned for all the latest news regarding the Mortal Kombat series and make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more content!
