Marvel star's brand new show cancelled after one season

Jon Bernthal, who you'll know from The Walking Dead and Marvel's The Punisher, seemed to have a great new starring role set up in American Gigolo.

The show's first season consisted of 10 episodes broadcast by Showtime, but has now been axed.

According to Deadline, Showtime's merger with Paramount+ has put many shows on the chopping block, and American Gigolo is just the latest to be discontinued.

preview for American Gigolo teaser (Showtime)

The series is based after the 1980 Richard Gere film of the same name, which saw escort Julian Kaye caught up in a murder investigation after becoming involved with a politician's wife.

Bernthal's television adaptation saw him take up the reins as Gere's character 15 years after the film's ending. Having been arrested at the end of the film, Julian Kaye tries to get to the bottom of his situation; why he was arrested and who betrayed him.

He also enters into a different world, with sex work having changed, and his relationships with loved ones frayed.

At the time of the show's announcement, it seemed that Showtime was excited for its release, with the network's president Gary Levine stating: "If you haven't already fallen under the spell of Jon Bernthal, get ready."

hbo's "we own this city" new york premiere

Dia Dipasupil//Getty Images

He continued: "Jon absolutely owns the screen with his searing, brooding and vulnerable performance in this contemporary version of American Gigolo.

"[Showrunner] David Hollander brilliantly reimagines the seductive original film, confronting the mystery, the exhilaration and the danger of our deepest desires."

While this will come as sad news for fans of the show, Bernthal devotees need not worry. The actor is set to star in upcoming movie Caste, which started filming last December.

Based on a book outlining the structural status of racism in the United States, the film has a star-studded cast also includes Aunjanue Ellis, Nick Offerman, and Vera Farmiga.