Jon Bernthal – Punisher in Daredevil: Born Again

The cast of the upcoming Disney+ series Daredevil: Born Again has grown by one more notable actor. For the first time since the Netflix Punisher series ended in 2019, Jon Bernthal will once again play Frank Castle or The Punisher.

However, how precisely does this lethal vigilante fit into the upcoming Daredevil series? Does the MCU even have room for a character as violent and dark as Frank Castle? Let’s examine the Punisher’s past narrative, his relationship with Daredevil, and what Frank might experience as he joins the MCU.

The Early History of Jon Bernthal’s Punisher Daredevil: Season 2

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In the second season of the Daredevil television series on Netflix, Bernthal made his acting debut as Frank Castle. Season 2, which takes place after his family is slain and Frank starts his one-man war on crime, features a significant role for Frank. He is known as “The Punisher” in the media.

Early on in Season 2, there are multiple violent meetings between Daredevil and the Punisher, including one where Frank ties up Matt and attempts to force him to put a criminal to death (in order to prove a point about lethal force being the only real option). Karen Page, Matt’s paralegal, starts looking into Frank’s dark past and discovers the tragic day his family was shot and killed in a park.

Frank is placed on trial after turning himself in, with Nelson & Murdock representing him. When they come very close to establishing that Frank is the victim of a huge military plot and not at fault for his conduct, when Frank takes the stand, he sabotages their defense. He is taken to Ryker’s Isle, where he forms a brief partnership with Wilson Fisk, another prisoner.

Fisk aids Castle in escaping because he believes that his vigilante campaign will make Fisk’s criminal adversaries more vulnerable. Late in the season, Frank makes a comeback and contributes his lethal marksmanship to the fight against the Hand.

The Punisher Netflix Series

The Punisher series on Netflix, which delves far further into the violent genesis narrative of the character and his desire to hold those who abandoned him accountable, is made possible by Daredevil: Season 2.

Although the exact perpetrators of that attack are considerably harder to identify, Season 1 opens with Frank shooting the final member of the group of guys that shot his family. Micro (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), a hacker who faked his own death after being a target of the same scheme, teams up with Frank. While avoiding capture by the ferocious DEA Agent Dinah Madani, the two try to locate their objectives (Amber Rose Revah).

Moreover, Frank meets up with Billy Russo (Ben Barnes), an old military comrade, but in true Marvel form, it turns out that Russo was involved in the plot that killed Frank’s family. In the Season 1 conclusion, when the two finally square off, Frank leaves the conceited Russo terribly battered and scarred on his face.

Season 2 pits Frank against both familiar and new foes, including the vengeful, battle-scarred Russo/Jigsaw and the fundamentalist assassin John Pilgrim (Josh Stewart). Yet, the most important lesson from Season 2 is that Russo is no longer alive, and Frank is now wholly dedicated to his battle and his new identity as the Punisher. This soldier will no longer be able to enjoy a pleasant retirement.

Punisher and Daredevil’s Rivalry

There’s a logical reason why Bernthal’s Punisher persona is being brought back into the main Marvel Cinematic Universe through Born Again and why he first appeared in Daredevil: Season 2. Punisher and Daredevil share a close relationship. That does not imply that they are close. Frank Castle isn’t a big fan of Matt Murdock’s non-lethal brand of vigilantism, even if he could manage healthy relationships.

The main conflict in this particular Marvel conflict is that. Frank Castle is of the opinion that criminals must be systematically eliminated using all available measures. Anything less than killing force, in his opinion, is a futile stopgap that just puts off the inevitable. Although Daredevil breaks the law every night, he ultimately thinks the system needs to be protected. The courts must distinguish between right and wrong and determine whether criminals should be executed.

Frank is seen by Matt as a tragic victim of corruption and as a lost soul whom he longs to connect with. During the course of their shared comic book history, Matt has often attempted to convince Frank to change his mind and abandon the life-consuming dark cause. He hasn’t had much luck thus far.

When Frank ties Matt up on a rooftop and presents him with an impossibly difficult choice, it is likely the most significant interaction between the two characters that is adapted in Daredevil: Season 2. He has three options: kill Frank to prevent Grotto from being killed, kill Grotto himself, or stay silent and let the Punisher do the job. By escaping this real death trap, Matt tries to locate a fourth option, but he is unable to save Grotto in time.

In contrast, Matt truly snaps and decides to shoot Frank in the comic. But, in that instance, he learns the rifle was never loaded. Even if Frank disagrees with Matt’s views, he respects him too much to let him turn into a murderer. He merely seeks to make a point. Which, in a word, describes their relationship.

Can Punisher Work in the MCU?

Bernthal has joined Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock and Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk as the most recent Netflix actors to reprise their roles on a Disney+ series. It’s more difficult to determine whether this implies that the Netflix Punisher series is genuinely canonical to the MCU. Nothing in She-Hulk or Hawkeye specifically refers to those earlier seasons of Daredevil, and despite D’Onofrio’s insistence that their characters are the same, Fisk sometimes comes across as a quite different person in Hawkeye.

Born Again is likely to expand on the broad Punisher/Daredevil dynamic established in the Netflix series, at the very least. Frank might not be the show’s main antagonist, but he will be a philosophical adversary. Matt will likely find it difficult to cooperate with Frank while simultaneously reducing the quantity of blood he pours.

On that basis, it’s important to consider how a figure as vicious and dark as Frank Castle is ever expected to fit into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. According to reports, Born Again is darker than previous MCU movies. Would Disney be willing to fully embrace TV-MA? Will Frank continue to murder as frequently and horrifyingly as he did in his previous series, or will the character be softened for this more laid-back superhero setting?

On the comic book front, Marvel has frequently wrestled with that problem. The darker Punisher seen in the superhero-free series Punisher MAX and the Punisher who resides within the boundaries of the Marvel Universe were the two distinct Punishers that Marvel published for many years. The latter version is frequently pushed in stranger and more outrageous directions, reflecting a world where many of the worst criminals are superhero-costumed vigilantes rather than drug lords and human traffickers.

Authors like Matt Fraction and Rick Remender promoted a strategy in which the Punisher shifts his war from regular criminals to the supervillains of the globe. For instance, when Norman Osborn is appointed the new director of SHIELD, HAMMER, Frank immediately tries to kill him, which angers the Dark Avengers. Frank becomes control of the Hand in Marvel’s most recent Punisher book and develops into a superhuman death dealer in his own right.

Even Hawkeye’s portrayal of Fisk may be an indication that this is where Frank will go in the MCU. Fisk appears to have some level of true super-strength and invulnerability in the MCU, yet in Netflix’s Daredevil, he is just an ordinary person (although a very strong one). For Born Again, it would be simple to expand on their shared history from the days of Netflix. After all, Frank vowed to kill Fisk when they next crossed paths, but we haven’t seen him make good on that threat. Born Again can be wild without needing to have Netflix levels of blood and gore thanks to The Punisher fighting an unstoppable Kingpin.

It might be Marvel’s strategy when they integrate the Punisher into the MCU. It’s possible that Frank may start going for real supervillains rather than just killing criminals. That would also entail replacing his arsenal of outdated firearms and explosives with more potent (and TV-14-appropriate) weapons. Perhaps the tale of Frank’s transformation into the zombie monster known as FrankenCastle will be adapted for the MCU.

Or maybe Bernthal’s reappearance is an indication that Marvel is prepared to completely embrace the notion that some MCU projects are intended just for adults. Is it really impossible that we could see a Punisher series that is just as dark and brutal as the Netflix version given that we’re getting an R-rated Deadpool 3? After all, why bring Bernthal back in the first place if Marvel intends to soften the Punisher for the MCU?

Review Daredevil’s past and present in the MCU, then watch every upcoming MCU film and television program to learn more about Born Again.

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