Emmerdale star Chris Bisson has admitted he was nearly axed from the soap after his character Jai Sharma went too far. The actor has played businessman Jai in the village since 2009.
And while he has become one of the soap’s mainstay characters now, it wasn’t always the case. Viewers will remember when recovering drug addict Jai was a full-time villain.
He infamously kidnapped Charity Dingle and kept her chained up in a shipping container. Charity was essentially tortured by Jai over a slight involving his son Archie.
And with him embracing the darkness that being a villain brings, Jai’s time in the village was nearly up. Actor Chris held discussions with Emmerdale bosses over his future on the soap.
He told OK! in 2017: “There were conversations being had about where we had gone with the character. Very frank and honest conversations with me and the producer saying ‘have we gone too far now and it is time to call it a day or do we redeem him?’.
Emmerdale star reveals he was nearly axed
“But we came to the conclusion that actually he wasn’t a bad character. He came in as a much nicer character and he did go off the rails but we have really pulled him back and that’s lovely to play.”
Chris first found fame in Coronation Street as Dev Alahan’s cousin Vikram. But he quit the soap after four years over not getting enough decent storylines.
He told Manchester Evening News in 2007: “I’d thought about leaving Coronation Street several times before I finally quit. That was because I hadn’t had a decent storyline for a while.
“I have been an actor since I was 13 and I’m not particularly worried. I played the same part in Coronation Street for four years.
“The one thing that I am enjoying now is the idea of playing very different parts. I want to get some diversity back.”
Read more: Emmerdale spoilers: Jai’s mum returns as Rishi drops a major bombshell
Now Chris is at the centre of one of Emmerdale’s biggest mysteries. Jai recently discovered he was adopted by dad Rishi Sharma.
But while Rishi has so far refused to reveal the truth, next week it will be exposed. However will Jai wish he didn’t know the answer?
Emmerdale usually airs weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV, with an hour-long episode on Thursdays.
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