Jon Bernthal Is Doing More on The Punisher Special Than Just Starring in It

Jon Bernthal will not only be starring as Frank Castle in a Punisher Disney+ special, but he’ll also be writing the story. One of the many fan-favorite aspects of Daredevil: Born Again is seeing Bernthal reprise his role as The Punisher. Marvel Studios seems to be pleased with Bernthal’s performance, since the studio is working with the actor to create a Marvel’s Special Presentation featuring Punisher. At the time of the announcement, it was said that Bernthal would write the script with his We Own This City director Reinaldo Marcus Green, who is also directing The Punisher Special. Bernthal has now opened up on how those early talks escalated to the project coming to life.

Collider spoke to Jon Bernthal at CinemaCon, where he was asked about Marvel’s The Punisher Special Presentation. “I’ve said it a million times: Frank is in my bones, is in my heart. I care about him,” he said.

“In discussing what this thing could be and this sort of version of Frank that I really felt that the audience was hungry for, that the military community was hungry for it, the first responder community, the comic book fans, they were really hungry for it,” Bernthal continued. “I presented that version to them, and they encouraged me. They encouraged me to keep coming to the table. As we were talking with different writers, the ideas that we were coming up with started to resonate, and I think they saw how much they resonated with me. I got a great group of vets that I work with. One in particular, my friend Nick, he’s just been incredible. I hope that it goes alright. I don’t like talking about these things because it’s a little bit of bark before there’s a bite, you know? I’m honored and I’m grateful. It’s an incredible group of people that we’re assembling.”

[RELATED: Marvel’s New Daredevil Series Reveals a Gruesome Fate for the Punisher]

Frank Castle returned to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Episode 4 of Daredevil: Born Again, after Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) went to pay Frank a visit. The two street-level heroes had a tense conversation, with Frank calling Matt out on his unwillingness to suit back up as Daredevil after the death of his best friend, Foggy Nelson, at the hands of Bullseye.

“It’s like a shotgun blast of a story, but also has all the pathos and emotion that you want out of a Frank Castle story,” Brad Winderbaum, Marvel’s head of TV, streaming, and animation, told EW about Punisher’s return in Daredevil: Born Again. “It’s so exciting.” Winderbaum added that the genesis of the Punisher Special Presentation came while filming the first season of Daredevil: Born Again, where Bernthal’s Punisher returns alongside other Marvel Netflix characters like Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio), Bullseye (Wilson Bethel), Elden Henson (Foggy Nelson), Deborah Ann Woll (Karen Page), and of course, Matt Murdock/Daredevil (Charlie Cox).

Marvel’s two previous Special Presentations were for Werewolf by Night and Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. Since the studio is working so closely with Bernthal, Punisher fans should feel confident that Frank is in good hands, and the quality of the final product is something that won’t be watered down. Mostly because Bernthal wouldn’t be a part of it if it were. He’s been on the record saying that before Marvel changed writers on Daredevil: Born Again, he wasn’t going to come back.

Are you excited for what Jon Bernthal is cooking up for The Punisher Special? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!