Ben Barnes from Netflix’s Punisher series expressed a desire for one key change to his character, Jigsaw, if he were to return toplay him again.
Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, starred in his own, self-titled series for Netflix where he was brought to life by Jon Bernthal. The actor is slated to reprise Castle in 2024’s Daredevil: Born Again.
With more of the content produced by the now-defunct Marvel Television branch seemingly on the table for exploration in the MCU, it’s become more likely that actors and characters from those series could make the jump to current Marvel Studios projects.
Ben Barnes Wants to ‘Reframe‘ Jigsaw
Ben Barnes, who starred in The Punisher for Netflix as the villain Jigsaw, was asked if he had any hopes of returning to the MCU during an interview in the latest issue of SFX Magazine. Barnes remarked that he’d love the chance to delve into a more comic book-accurate take on his character:
“I loved playing Jigsaw. I’d love to reframe him and really mess his face up this time.”
In the comics, Jigsaw’s face is often drawn rather grotesquely, which would be what Barnes referred to when he mentioned the character’s messed-up face:
However, what was seen in the live-action show didn’t quite have the same effect:
The actor additionally mentioned that there had been talks regarding him playing a superhero which ”didn’t pan out:”
“Oh my god. I saw pictures the other day of one of my best friends, Will Poulter, in 'Guardians Of The Galaxy [Vol 3].' Man, he looks good. I want someone to put me in a superhero suit before I age out. There’s definitely been some chats about a couple of superheroes over the years, which didn’t pan out.”
Barnes also rattled off other types of roles he’d like the opportunity to inhabit. He even implied that he’d like a run at Batman but lamented that the character “feels taken:”
“I read a lot of fantasy, so I love being in it. I love watching romcoms too, so I would like to do one. I’ve watched all the Marvel movies. DC is going to start becoming an interesting space again. Batman feels taken, but I love that style of alter-ego/hero.”
A Chance to Right a Marvel/Netflix Wrong
As popular as Marvel’s offerings for Netflix were, they didn’t always have the biggest budgets, and it often showed.
Sure, with very grounded series like Daredevil, there didn’t need to be much in the way of computer-generated special effects. But when things got to Iron Fist, it often felt like the producers were saying, “Hey folks, just trust us. Danny Rand fought a dragon even though we can’t show it.”
So, Jigsaw’s makeup in Season 2 of The Punisher left a lot to be desired, which was definitely something that wasn’t lost on fans. Especially after the extremely brutal beatdown that Frank dished out on him at the end of Season 1.
Marvel Studios doesn’t play around though. If something needs to look properly horrifying, they’ll likely find a way to show it, within reason. And they have the money to back up their ideas too.
Just look at Wanda Maximoff’s gory murders of Earth-838’s Illuminati in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Or more recently, the High Evolutionary’s disgusting true face after his mask gets peeled off In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Who knows, Marvel Studios may have designs on bringing more Punisher-affiliated characters into the street-level MCU on Disney+ after Daredevil: Born Again. That would hopefully include Ben Barnes’ Jigsaw, revolting visage and all.
Both seasons of The Punisher can be streamed on Disney+.
