The MCU's Punisher actor Jon Bernthal settled fears about his violent anti-hero's upcoming PG-13 appearance. The Walking Dead actor Jon Bernthal has played Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, since 2016 across four mature seasons of Marvel TV. The criminal-killing anti-hero's brutality came to life across Netflix's Daredevil and The Punisher, before returning last year in Disney+'s Daredevil: Born Again. This year will mark the end of an era for The Punisher when he features in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, his first appearance in a non-adult-rated project.
Jon Bernthal spoke with ScreenRant and was asked whether fans would see the same "level of violence" with The Punisher in Spider-Man: Brand New Day as they have seen across his mature TV appearances. While remaining coy about his role in the blockbuster (which arrives on July 31), his comments ought to settle fears that The Punisher would be "Disneyfied" for his PG-13 debut.
First, Bernthal reminded fans that, around the same time as Spider-Man 4 arrives, he will return in a one-off Disney+ Special Presentation which he has co-written, and promises is just as "high octane kind of Punisher as you've ever seen:"
"... I don't even know what I can say, but I know around that same time, there will also be this Punisher Special that's coming out that I think will be as sort of high octane kind of Punisher as you've ever seen.
The actor noted how it was "really important" to him and the Spider-Man 4 crew that The Punisher felt the same across the PG-13 movie and his TV-MA Disney+ special, to which he stated, "I do believe that we achieved that:"
"And I think what was really important to me to [director Destin Daniel Cretton] and to [Spider-Man actor Tom Holland] is that we believed that the Punisher that could walk off of the Spider-Man set could walk onto the Special set. I do believe that we achieved that."
Proof That Spider-Man 4 Will Do The Punisher Justice
Long before his return in Born Again was on the table, Bernthal explained that he is "enormously protective" of The Punisher because of what it represents to so many, and he is "only interested in doing it right." He was clear that Castle requires a "level of darkness," hinting at his skepticism of returning in the MCU.
Even when initially approached for Born Again, Bernthal revealed to Entertainment Weekly that he thought that version of Castle featured would "not appeal to the fans and wouldn't be congruent," and thus he walked away. It was only after the creative overhaul that he was brought "into the conversation" and got on board.
Bernthal once noted how The Punisher "means so much to people in the military," and steps have been taken to preserve that in upcoming MCU projects.
U.S. Marine Corps veteran Colton Hill confirmed recently on The Sidney Gordon Podcast that, after building a "relationship" with Bernthal, the actor himself brought him on board to aid in the character's MCU future. He revealed that he served as a "weapons and tactics" consultant for The Punisher's upcoming Disney+ special that evolved into a "military advisor" role for Spider-Man 4.
The Punisher may not be able to drop F-bombs or kill his criminal targets so brutally in Brand New Day, but fans can rest assured that he is in safe hands with the ever-protective Bernthal. The movie could dive into his dark psyche in contrast to the optimistic, jokey Peter Parker, placing the two heroes' values at odds.
