Frank Castle, aka the Punisher, is easily Marvel's most violent character that can remotely be aligned with the concept of a hero. His blood-soaked origin begins with Frank as a veteran of the Vietnam War. He settled down, married a woman named Maria, and had two kids with her. But Castle's family was massacred by New York City mobsters, leaving him the only survivor. Something crucial in Frank's brain broke that day, and ever since, he's declared a one-man war on criminal activity with his finger squarely on the trigger. The Punisher can't be swayed, reasoned with, or admonished to put down his guns and cease with his crusade. He has killed repeatedly, efficiently, gruesomely, and indiscriminately for years.
Despite, or perhaps because of his hyperviolent nature, the Punisher has often been adapted outside the comics. And although some of that has come in the form of cartoon and video game appearances, Frank has most frequently found himself at the center of live-action movies and TV shows. Several beloved actors have stepped into Castle's combat boots since 1989, and the character's media portrayal has shown no signs of slowing down. Marvel Television and Disney+ will release an MCU Punisher Special Presentation that will pick up with Frank after his role in Daredevil: Born Again.
Jon Bernthal, who has been the face of the antihero since 2016, will return for his first solo adventure since 2019. And according to internet film scooper DanielRPK, the special's main villain is rumored to be a "female crime boss." As such, this will be the first time that a Punisher-focused media project will feature a woman as its primary antagonist in over three decades, smashing a 36-year streak.
Disney+'s Punisher Special Presentation will arrive sometime in 2026.
All of Punisher's Live-Action Villains
Lady Tanaka - The Punisher (1989)
In the late 1980s, Dolph Lundgren was a hot commodity. The towering, musclebound Sweden-born performer was fresh off of Rocky IV and Masters of the Universe. New World Pictures and director Mark Goldblatt thought Lundgren's imposing frame would be perfect for the title role in their 1989 feature film The Punisher (at least after their original choice, Christopher Lambert, got injured and dropped out). And despite never securing an American theatrical release, the movie has since gone on to earn a cult classic status.
Japanese-American actress Kim Miyori, who had been working consistently throughout the decade, was cast as Lady Tanaka, a stone-cold Yakuza boss who has moved into New York City to capitalize on a Mafia power vacuum. Of course, this does not sit well with Frank Castle, who infiltrates Tanaka's headquarters in a blaze of bullets and takes down the ruthless gangster, permanently. Lady Tanaka was an original foe developed for the film and has never shown up in a comic.
Howard Saint - The Punisher (2004)
Fifteen years after Castle's first cinematic outing, Lionsgate took a stab at bringing the vicious vigilante to the big screen again. Deep Blue Sea's Thomas Jane was director Jonathan Hensleigh's first pick for the lead part for the 2004 Punisher movie. The picture made some unusual modifications to Frank Castle's lore. In this incarnation, he's an FBI agent waiting for his imminent retirement when tragedy strikes. Crime lord Howard Saint (another non-comic character) tasks his men with wiping out not only Frank's wife and children, but his entire extended family. But not before Castle's elementary-school-age son gives his dad a black t-shirt with a skull on it, just because.
Howard Saint was brought to life by none other than John Travolta, who struts through The Punisher chewing scenery as though it were cotton candy. Saint swore a vendetta upon Frank because his work with the FBI resulted in the death of his son Bobby, an arms-dealing delinquent. The '04 Punisher is not as appreciated as the '89 film. Critics largely enjoyed Thomas Jane's performance but frequently took issue with Travolta, who, despite his loosey-goosey approach, was labeled bland and uninspired as Howard Saint.
Jigsaw - Punisher: War Zone (2008)
In the late 2000s, Lionsgate elected to reboot Punisher on film, spurred to this decision after Thomas Jane chose not to return for a sequel. The effort culminated in Punisher: War Zone. Helmed by Lexi Alexander, War Zone is perhaps the most free-wheelingly savage live-action Punisher interpretation yet (Seriously, he vaporizes a guy in mid-air with a heat-seeking missile at one point.) This time, Ol' Frankie was brought to life by the late Ray Stevenson (who was seen for one of the final times as nuanced Force-user Baylan Skoll in Ahsoka).
Stevenson's Punisher bloodily went toe-to-toe with arguably his most well-known adversary: Jigsaw (The Wire star Dominic West), who gets his name from his hideously disfigured, patchwork face. Jigsaw was the first on-screen Punisher antagonist to actually be taken from the comics. War Zone was the last Punisher film to date, perhaps due to its grave underperformance. The movie fared much better with audiences in the years since.
Jigsaw - The Punisher Season 1 (2017)
After his breakout contribution in Daredevil Season 1, Jon Bernthal won his own Punisher television series, which Steve Lightfoot developed. The Punisher ran for two seasons on Netflix, from 2017 to 2019, with Bernthal in the lead. His turn as Frank Castle has been so acclaimed that the actor carried his portrayal into 2025's Daredevil: Born Again. In the first Punisher season, Castle must unravel the threads behind the execution of his family, which leads to his discovery of a much greater conspiracy.
Ben Barnes, who played Logan Delos on HBO's Westworld, performed another take on Jigsaw. Season 1 ends with Frank destroying Jigsaw's face by smashing it into a mirror. However, when he returns for Season 2, Jigsaw is barely damaged, left with only minor, subtle facial scars (which Ben Barnes was less than pleased about).
John Pilgrim - The Punisher Season 2 (2019)
The second and final season of Netflix's Punisher solo series finds Frank Castle at a moral crossroads, as he questions his conviction in his twisted pursuit of justice. Bernthal reprises the lead part, which he would then leave on the table for six years.
Targeted by Frank's crosshairs in Season 2 was yet another character originally conceived for the production: Religious wackjob John Pilgrim (although Pilgrim is loosely based on a minor comic character named the Mennonite). Josh Stewart, who has recurred on Criminal Minds since the procedural's second year, lent his talents to Pilgrim.
