Jon Bernthal Promises Punisher Special Won’t Be Toned Down

Daredevil: Born Again has finally arrived in all its grounded glory within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the show has already spawned a spin off project that’s recently gotten a particularly important endorsement from its leading man.

Daredevil: Born Again has been a bottomless pit of surprises for fans of the Charlie Cox-led Netflix series that preceded it, and one of the most significant additions to the MCU the show has promised is the return of Jon Bernthal’s Punisher, a character as far removed from the MCU and Disney’s family-friendly appeal. Fans have since been concerned about whether the franchise would change the Punisher to give the character a more MCU-friendly vibe, despite promises of unexpected levels of gritty, grounded ultraviolence making its way onto Disney+ via Born Again.

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It’s been rumored that Marvel Studios was developing a new Punisher TV series for a while now, and that rumbling was recently confirmed with the announcement of a Punisher special for Disney+, with Bernthal set to reprise the titular role alongside his appearances on Daredevil: Born Again. While fans are both excited and doubly worried about the character’s violent crusade getting whitewashed, Bernthal has come forward to offer some assurances. “I care very deeply about Frank,” the actor assured fans in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “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.” He also gave fans a brief comment on how it’ll compare to the Netflix fare.

While a scheduling conflict might have brought the Punisher to Born Again, the character’s arrival is timely as the ultimate litmus test for how far the MCU is willing to push the envelope on the sort of cold brutality that the Daredevil revival already displayed in its first two episodes. A solo project for the Punisher is sure to be a first for the MCU, for better or worse. Bernthal understands the character better than most, and put in a stellar performance in the Netflix era that bore that understanding out on the screen. Still, it was a bold decision to bring the character in at all, especially with someone as passionate about him as Bernthal has proven to be in the past. It’s been the trend that stars attached to Marvel projects are not massive fans of the characters themselves, and Bernthal fit that bill once upon a time. However, since his original casting for the Netflix shows, he’s immersed himself in the character’s most important comic book stories and developed a love for the character and his complexity.

Bernthal is easily the best live-action version of the Punisher that fans have gotten, with many casual fans likely unaware that anyone else has even played the character in live-action. If anyone can bring the character to the MCU with his grit and complex relationship with morality intact, it’s him. Fans can likely take him at his word that the upcoming special will be worthy of the name in its execution, and enjoy his appearance in Daredevil: Born Again while they wait for the upcoming solo project.

Daredevil: Born Again is available to stream on Disney+, with the Punisher special currently set for a 2026 release.

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Source: The Hollywood Reporter