By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
Recently, Marvel Studios released The Punisher: One Last Kill on Disney+. At the same time, the show was seen as something of a gamble. The Punisher hadn’t had his own show in over seven years, and he hadn’t even popped back up in Daredevil: Born Again Season 2. Between this and the growing amount of superhero fatigue among audiences, a new Punisher project seemed like something of a risk. Making it a one-off event rather than a new series? That seemed even riskier. However, that gamble paid off, and The Punisher: One Last Kill ended up being one of the most talked-about Marvel productions in recent memory.
How do we know the gamble has paid off? According to reliable Marvel scooper Daniel Richtman, Marvel has given the green light to a new project that follows up on The Punisher: One Last Kill. He doesn’t yet know what that will look like, but things are clearly looking up for Punisher actor Jon Bernthal. Between the success of One Last Kill, this new mystery project, and a prominent appearance in this summer’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it’s clear that Disney is ready to go all-in on Frank Castle.
What Will The Next Punisher Project Be?
Though he confirmed the development of another Punisher project, Daniel Richtman did not have any insight as to what the project could look like. There’s a possibility that Disney wants to create another special event like One Last Kill to see if they can replicate the earlier specials’ success. Should a follow-up be successful, we might see more one-offs featuring various Marvel characters (personally, I’d kill for a Jessica Jones special) that Disney isn’t ready to devote an entire season to. On the more ambitious end, Disney might want to give Punisher his own movie, hoping audiences who dig his appearance in Brand New Day will enjoy seeing him headline his own solo film.
The most likely scenario, though, is that we’ll get a new Punisher series (either a solo series or the rumored Heroes For Hire series) picking up where One Last Kill left off. Some fans were frustrated by that special event because it left some major plot threads unresolved: Ma Gnucci was still alive, Punisher’s neighborhood was still a warzone, and he was still being hunted by a small army of thugs chasing Gnucci’s reward money. While it was obviously annoying to see One Last Kill end right when it was getting good, it’s smart money that this special was basically a secret pilot gauging fans’ interest in a solo Punisher series.
The Personal Touch
While some fans have mocked the actor’s range (like, half of the guy’s dialogue is just muttering “no” repeatedly), Jon Bernthal is the primary reason for the Punisher’s success in the MCU. The actor perfectly captures both the roaring rage and hidden vulnerabilities of the character. Plus, he seems personally committed to bringing the character’s story to life, which is why he was co-writer for The Punisher: One Last Kill. Now, it seems, the actor wants to continue applying the personal touch to all of his future Marvel appearances.
In a recent interview with Esquire, the actor laid out a fairly clear stipulation: “I’m really down to keep doing more. But I think I have to be the one that’s making it.” In other words, he would like to continue writing, producing, and generally shaping the future for the character who helped make him famous. Only time will tell if Punisher really comes back and if Bernthal is allowed creative input, but, as with Ryan Reynolds’ love of all things Deadpool, it’s always refreshing to see an actor so invested in their most famous character.
Assuming Daniel Richtman is correct that we’ll be getting more Punisher content after Brand New Day, there’s not much else to say. Except, of course, the obvious: “Welcome back, Frank!”
