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The Punisher/Frank Castle has been a beloved character in the Marvel Universe, but he is not a family-friendly character like Spider-Man. Therefore, it wasn't a surprise when he was announced to be a part of the darker and more adult Netflix Marvel Universe through the second season of Daredevil. In that season, The Punisher is one of the season's initial villains.
Jon Bernthal sat down for an interview with comedian Jimmy Kimmel on Jimmy Kimmel Live in March 2016. In that interview, Bernthal touched on a wide range of topics, including his interactions with Marvel fans and one of his children preferring Daredevil over The Punisher.
The conversation also veered a bit towards Frank Castle's future in the Netflix Marvel Universe, to which the actor revealed that he is obligated to not reveal anything. After this conversation, Kimmel asked Bernthal about the latter's process behind preparing for an intense role like The Punisher. To this question, Bernthal said this:
"if I was maybe a better actor I could, go to the bars and the nightclubs and go eat Chinese food and just kind of show up and be like 'I'm The Punisher. But uh no I have to uh have to sort of stay in it. I have to stay in it pretty painfully."
People were left impressed by Bernthal's performance in the second season of Daredevil, which ultimately convinced Netflix to green-light a solo series headlined by Frank Castle.
Netflix green-lit two seasons of The Punisher:
Following his appearance in Daredevil Season 2, there were two seasons of The Punisher. The first season of the solo series followed Frank Castle unearthing the darker conspiracy behind his family's death. Assisting him in this ordeal is former NSA analyst David "Micro" Lieberman (played by Ebon Moss-Bachrach in his first Marvel role before Ben Grimm/The Thing in The Fantastic Four: First Steps).
In the second season, Frank finds himself embroiled in the mysterious attempted murder of a young woman named Amy Bendix. This makes Frank a target to new and old enemies, including his old best friend Billy Russo, who goes by the name Jigsaw now.
But, like other Netflix Marvel series, The Punisher was canceled by the streaming giant after the release of the second season in 2019. However, almost two years later, fans were hopeful for Jon Bernthal's return as Frank Castle after Charlie Cox was revealed to be a part of Spider-Man: No Way Home. His return was finally confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter in March 2023 in the original version of Daredevil: Born Again.
While Marvel pulled the plug on the original version of Born Again, Bernthal was confirmed to be a part of the overhauled series.
What role will Frank Castle play in Daredevil: Born Again?
Episode 3 of Born Again, "The Hollow of His Hand," ended with a hooded figure killing Hector Ayala/White Tiger. The figure who shot Ayala is clearly seen wearing The Punisher's skull. It is a reference to a fringe section of society, including some police departments across the US, using the skull.
This act in the real world has been under scrutiny for a while, and even Gerry Conway, the creator of the character in comics, has criticized this. Thus, it looks like Born Again will be tackling this specific issue. Dario Scardapane, the showrunner of Born Again, hyped up Castle's appearance in an upcoming episode by saying:
“Whenever you put Frank and Daredevil together, all bets are off. It’s a tornado. I mean… we broke some stuff!”
Other than Born Again, there is also a Punisher special, which will be co-written by Bernthal himself. The actor said this to The Hollywood Reporter during The Accountant 2's SXSW premiere on March 8, 2025:
“I care very deeply about Frank, I’m really grateful that I’m getting the opportunity to tell the story that I think the fans deserve. We’re giving it our all and we’re trying to tell a Frank Castle story that we’re going to turn our back on the audience — it’s not going to be easy, it’s not going to be light, and I think it’s the version that this character deserves and I’m just beyond honored and grateful that we get the opportunity.”
When asked about the tone of the series, Bernthal replied:
“It’s going to be dark; Frank has no interest in breaking out the darkness. It’s not going to be easy. I don’t know if that’s the Netflix tone then that’s what it’s going to be. It will not be Punisher-lite, I promise you that.”
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Here's to hoping that the upcoming fourth episode of Daredevil: Born Again features The Punisher.
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