John Bernthal’s version of the Punisher/Frank Castle is returning to television. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bernthal will reprise the role in the upcoming Disney+ series Daredevil: Born Again.
Bernthal’s version of the Punisher was first introduced in the second season of Netflix’s Daredevil series in 2016. Frank Castle is a former marine, whose entire family was murdered. After the death of his family, Castle became the vigilante and started hunting and killing gang members in Hell’s Kitchen. Bernthal later reprised his role in the spin-off series The Punisher, which ran from 2017-2019 on Netflix.
Outside of Marvel, Bernthal’s other work includes 2022’s Sharp Stick, 2021’s The Unforgiveable, and playing Shane Walsh in AMC’s The Walking Dead.
The Punisher was previously played by Dolph Lundgren in the 1989 film, Thomas Jane in the 2004 film, and Ray Stevenson in 2008’s Punisher: War Zone. John Beck voiced the character in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, which aired on Fox Kids from 1994-1998.
Charlie Cox (Daredevil/Matt Murdock) and Vincent D’Onofrio (the Kingpin/Wilson Fisk) will also reprise their roles in Daredevil: Born Again. The Netflix Daredevil series ran from 2015-2018. Cox also played the character in the 2017 Netflix series The Defenders, which featured Daredevil teaming up with Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter), Luke Cage (Mike Colter), and Iron Fist (Finn Jones).
Cox’s first appearance as the character after the conclusion of the Netflix series was in the 2021 film Spider-Man: No Way Home. In the film, Matt Murdock was Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) lawyer after Peter's secret identity was revealed to the world. Cox also played the character in two episodes of the 2022 Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. D’Onofrio reprised his role as Wilson Fisk in the 2021 Disney+ series Hawkeye.
Daredevil: Born Again was announced by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2022. The season will consist of 18 episodes and is set to be released in 2024. Cox and D’Onofrio will also appear as their characters in the upcoming Disney+ series Echo. Cox will also voice an animated version of Daredevil in the upcoming series Spider-Man: Freshman Year.
Daredevil: Born Again is set to premiere on Disney+ in 2024. Both the original Daredevil series and The Punisher are available to stream on Disney+.
