After Daredevil Star's Recent Comments About Jon Bernthal's Punisher, I'm Even More Excited For Frank Castle's MCU Spinoff

By Kai Young

Published Mar 9, 2025

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Marvel's Matt Murdock's Daredevil for his own solo MCU series that directly continues the story from Netflix's original Daredevil series. Born Again, which has brought back a number of Defenders Saga characters, has kicked off with a bang, and is expected to get even more intense, especially with Jon Bernthal's return right round the corner.

Jon Bernthal first appeared as Frank Castle in Daredevil season 2, introduced as a United States Marine who became the vigilante known as the Punisher to avenge the murders of his wife and two children. Bernthal's portrayal was so popular that it led to the development of a two-season spinoff, The Punisher, and made him one of the first Defenders Saga characters confirmed to be returning in Daredevil: Born Again. The Punisher's future in the MCU has already been confirmed, and Charlie Cox has just made Frank Castle's new Special Presentation even more exciting.

Charlie Cox Confirms Jon Bernthal Is The Best Man To Write The Punisher’s Spinoff

Frank Castle Will Return In A Punisher-Focused Special Presentation

Frank Castle in skull costume in The Punisher

On February 25, Entertainment Weekly reported that Jon Bernthal would be returning as Frank Castle after Daredevil: Born Again in a new Special Presentation focused on the Punisher. This report also confirmed that Bernthal himself will be writing the spinoff alongside his We Own This City director Reinaldo Marcus Green, who will also direct the project. It's rare that an MCU actor writes their own live-action project, but Charlie Cox has revealed new information about Born Again's production that proves Bernthal is the best man to write the Punisher's Special Presentation (via GamesRadar).

[Jon Bernthal] has a couple of really great scenes, potentially iconic moments. They're an absolute joy to shoot... There was a scene [in Daredevil: Born Again season 1], and he cares so much, he gets so into it, like thinks about it, it's almost like a pain-body. We had this scene and he called me the night before and he said, 'Some of these lines don't make sense for me for where I'm at, I need to mess with these a little bit. Here's what I'm gonna say, I want to say this.' He just changed some of his lines, he had kinda written his own thing. So, I had to adapt and relearn my stuff, which I'm totally okay to do as he's brilliant. And then we get to set and he didn't say any of those, he just made up a whole new set of lines. And I was like, 'Okay…!'

While Charlie Cox states that all of Daredevil and the Punisher's chemistry is written in the script, he also stresses that Jon Bernthal is a fan of improvisation and often rewrites his lines during filming, making Frank Castle's moments even more powerful. This proves how in-tune Bernthal is with the character of Frank Castle, and means that, since he's already writing many of his lines as the Punisher on set, Bernthal is no doubt the perfect writer to pen the story for the Punisher's Special Presentation. This makes Daredevil: Born Again's first spinoff even more enticing.

What Story Could Marvel Explore In The Punisher’s Spinoff?

The Punisher's Special Presentation Is Expected To Release On Disney+ In 2026

Jon Bernthal's Punisher is yet to appear in Daredevil: Born Again, so it's unclear what mission Matt Murdock will enlist his help for in the Phase 5 series. Whatever this is could set up the Punisher's Special Presentation, or establish Frank Castle as a more permanent fixture in the MCU. While the details of the Punisher's spinoff story are still uncertain, Jon Bernthal himself might have already provided a hint, as he shared an image of the cover of Marvel Comics' Punisher (Vol. 2) #53 from 1991, the first issue of the Final Days arc.

Marvel Comics' Final Days arc saw Frank Castle uncover the drug-pushing empire of Howard Nees, who had also been disrupting Kingpin's schemes. Wilson Fisk abducts Microchip, Castle's most loyal ally, to force Castle into killing Nees, which kick-starts a dramatic chain of events. This would be a powerful and intense story to explore in a Special Presentation focusing on the Punisher, while there's also speculation that, following Daredevil: Born Again, Castle could become more of a bona fide hero in the MCU, perhaps even adopting his War Machine moniker, but only time will tell what story Marvel chooses to explore.