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Punisher’s Jon Bernthal on why he first walked away from Daredevil: Born Again

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Jon Bernthal holds Charlie Cox's body up against a locker.
Marvel Studios

Warning: This article contains some spoilers for the latest episode of Daredevil: Born Again. 

The Punisher is back. In the latest episode of Daredevil: Born Again, Jon Bernthal made his highly anticipated return as Frank Castle, aka the Punisher.

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The episode marks Bernthal’s first appearance as the vigilante since Netflix’s The Punisher in 2019. However, the return almost never happened. Bernthal originally walked away from the first incarnation of Daredevil: Born Again.

“Ultimately, I didn’t see it,” Bernthal told EW. “I didn’t see the version of Frank, and what they wanted from Frank [didn’t] really make sense to me and I thought would not appeal to the fans and wouldn’t be congruent. It was not something I was really interested in doing. So we had to walk away.”

In September 2023, Marvel pulled the plug on Born Again and creatively overhauled the series. New writers and directing teams were brought in to give the Disney+ series a grittier and more violent tone, similar to the one employed by the Netflix show.

The Punisher’s Dario Scardapane became the new showrunner on Born Again. Bernthal appreciated these changes and changed his original stance on returning.

“They really brought me into the conversation,” Bernthal explained. “We really got specific about where Frank is psychologically, where Frank’s at physically.”

Jon Bernthal stands as the Punisher and stares.
Netflix / Netflix

Daredevil: Born Again won’t be a one-off for Bernthal’s character. The Punisher will receive a Disney+ TV special, similar to Werewolf by Night. Bernthal has been extremely hands-on, penning the screenplay with director Reinaldo Marcus Green.

“The story that we’ve laid out is, I think, really special,” Bernthal said about the upcoming 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.”

The next episode of Daredevil: Born Again streams to Disney+ on Tuesday, March 25.

Dan Girolamo
Dan Girolamo
Former Entertainment Writer
Dan is a passionate and multitalented content creator with experience in pop culture, entertainment, and sports. Throughout…
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