Jon Bernthal is back as Frank Castle, aka Punisher, and he’s not wasting any time making an impact. The made his debut in Daredevil: Born Again during Episode 4, and even though his screen time was brief, it was intense.
Bernthal is opening up about the tension-filled scene with Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock, and what’s next for The Punisher.
In the episode titled “Sic Semper Systema,” Murdock tracks down Castle after finding a bullet casing marked with that familiar skull insignia at the scene of Hector Ayala’s murder.
What follows is exactly the kind of heated exchange you’d expect between these two: Frank Castle pushing Murdock to admit that deep down, he wanted to kill Bullseye for Foggy’s murder, and that he should have.
Bernthal broke down the scene with Entertainment Weekly, saying:
“There’s a little bit of Frank in all of us; I genuinely believe that. Like that line, ‘We’re all one bad day away from being me.’ I think that Frank is seeing himself in Matt, and Matt knows that he’s seeing Frank in himself, and there’s a glee in that.
“But also, Frank really has no time for the gray. He has no time for figuring things out or obsessing over things. Frank really believes that the back and forth and the twisting and turning that Matt does is antithetical from his truth, and he knows it.
“For Frank, there’s nothing like having that bit of wisdom over Matt and torturing him about it because he knows that he’s right.”
Bernthal’s Castle has always been a force of nature, but his ability to get under Murdock’s skin is just as brutal as his combat skills. It’s unclear when Frank will show up again in Born Again, but even if his role this season is limited, fans won’t have to wait long for more Punisher action.
Bernthal is set to headline his own Punisher Disney+ Special Presentation that he is also co-writing alongside director Reinaldo Marcus Green (We Own This City). According to Bernthal, this was a project he fought for:
“I went through the process. I went in, I pitched, I gave an outline before I even put pen to page, and I felt like I did not want them to just hand it to me. They had read some of my writing, asked to come and do a pitch, so I did. And they’ve held me accountable to every step along the way.
“I really want to earn this and I really want this to be good. The story that we’ve laid out is, I think, really special. It’s the visceral, psychologically complex, unforgiving, no-holds-barred version of Frank where he’s going to turn his back to the audience.
“And nothing is easy and all violence has a cost, and we’re going to see that cost. I’m grateful that they’re letting me go to the places that I really want to go.”
If there’s one thing Bernthal has made clear, it’s that his version of Frank Castle isn’t about glorifying violence. It’s about showing its emotional weight, its consequences, and what it does to a person.
Bernthal isn’t revealing much about Castle’s long-term role in the MCU, though it’s widely believed he’ll also be involved in Daredevil: Born Again Season 2. What he does appreciate, though, is the creative freedom Marvel is giving him to shape Frank’s journey.
“What I really appreciate with these guys is that they have their vision. They have an idea of where they want him to go and the world in which they want him to exist. But they’re really giving me agency on how we get him there and making sure that it’s honest and authentic and truthful.”
As a fan of Bernthal’s Punisher, it’s great to hear that Marvel is letting the actor play a big role in shaping this character and his story arc.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
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