Before the days of Disney+, superhero fans will remember when Netflix had its own Marvel shows set within the MCU. One of these was The Punisher and now he’s coming back in a new series with Jon Bernthal returning to play the gun-toting vigilante.
Rosario Dawson, who played Claire Temple in the other Netflix-Marvel shows confirmed the news in a Q&A panel at the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo after a fan had asked if more of the Netflix-Marvel heroes would be coming back since Vincent D’Onofrio returned to play the Kingpin in Hawkeye and Charlie Cox’s returned as Matt Murdock in Spider-Man: No Way Home and will continue to play The Man Without Fear in Daredevil: Born Again which releases in Spring 2024.
“I found out yesterday that The Punisher was happening again, so I feel like it’s my second chance, because it was the only one of the shows that I wasn’t in and I love Jon Bernthal.” Said Dawson.
“So let’s make it all happen collectively guys!”
Fans who’d waited a long time for this news shared their excitement in the comments:
“PUNISHER WITH JOHN BERNTHAL BACK!?! THANK YOU FEIGE.”
“Punisher fans rise!”
“YES!!!! It’s like I won the lottery. All of my faves are returning.”
Arguably, the Marvel-Netflix shows had a much grittier tone than the rest of the MCU. This universe consisted of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist who all had their own shows which led to a miniseries team-up called The Defenders. The Punisher was not a part of this group given his violent means of justice and initially fought against Daredevil in the shows second season.
Unlimited directions for Punisher reboot
The last time fans saw Frank Castle, he had killed Jigsaw and fully embraced his identify as The Punisher. He refuses an offer to work as a hired gun for the CIA because he “already has a job” as he walks in on a drug deal, armed with two rifles and the iconic trench coat. He may have just said that to get off the phone as no details were given as to who his employer was.
The series ended on a cliff-hanger which leaves the writers of the rebooted series to go in any direction.
With Marvel Studios recently announcing a boat load of new films and television series as part of the MCU’s Phase 5 and 6 being the next stages of MCU’s ‘The Multiverse Saga’, comic book fans have a lot of content to look forward to. One of these is Echo, a series where Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock is expected be searching for a former ally, and it’s rumoured to be fellow Netflix-Marvel hero Jessica Jones played by Krysten Ritter. Perhaps fan’s will see the remaining heroes, Luke Cage and Iron Fist be discovered in similar fashion or perhaps in their own series as Heroes for Hire.