Watch This First Sneak Peek at a Ruthless Mahershala Ali in Luke Cage as Cottonmouth Stokes!

~Matt Key

The next big Marvel series out of Netflix, Luke Cage, hits our screens in just a couple more weeks — September 30th to be exact — and will star Mike Colter as the titular character, whom we first met in Jessica Jones.

The promos to ensure our eyes watch their series are starting to really pour out. The other day, we saw a clip of Luke Cage saving a small Harlem restaurant from some thugs, even catching a bullet in his barehands. Point blank! And now, today, we have a new clip that shows the opposite side of this struggle.

We’ve seen the hero, so now, let’s meet the villain. Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes, as played by actor Mahershala Ali. He’s the crime boss in Harlem, running things. By all accounts, his portrayal of this crime king is just as quietly ruthless and powerful as Vincent D’Onofrio’s performance as Wilson “The Kingpin” Fisk in the Daredevil series. We can certainly see that here as he directs his controlled, almost happy rage, at a subordinate on the other side of the camera.

He’s chastising him, putting him in his place, most likely winding himself up for some midday murder and all as a way to keep his throne because, as he says, everybody wants to be the king. It’s the entire reason he even has that painting of looking over his shoulder.

You can watch the sneak peek clip below.

Luke Cage – Official “Be King” Clip #3… by comicbookdotcom