Jon Bernthal’s Punisher is in the midst of a major Marvel revival years after his last appearance in the Netflix television shows. Earlier this year, he donned the skull vest again for Daredevil: Born Again, and he is currently filming a new Special Presentation for the MCU. He has also been cast in the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day, where he will share the screen with Tom Holland’s Web-Crawler and Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk. Now, photographer Steve Sands has captured the best image yet of the updated Punisher uniform Bernthal will wear in the Special Presentation, sharing the photo on his Instagram.
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The new Punisher special is being co-written by Bernthal himself alongside director Reinaldo Marcus Green. The project is expected to be a stand-alone story that will likely fill in the narrative gaps for Frank Castle between the end of Daredevil: Born Again Season 1 and his appearance in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. While a release date has not been officially announced, set photos have seemingly placed the special’s events in the summer of 2027. One photo revealed a poster for a concert dated Sunday, July 18th, a day and date combination that only matches with the year 2027 in the MCU timeline, placing the story just a few months after the events of Born Again.
Set photos have also strongly hinted that the special will pit Frank Castle against the Gnucci crime family. A storefront for “Gnucci’s Family Restaurant” was spotted on set, referencing the powerful mafia organization from the character’s comic book history. In the comics, Frank’s war with Isabella “Ma” Gnucci leads to one of his most brutal stories, and Bernthal has promised the special will not shy away from the character’s dark nature. “It’s going to be dark; Frank has no interest in breaking out the darkness. It’s not going to be easy,” Bernthal said. “It will not be Punisher-lite, I promise you that.”
What Will Be the Punisher’s Role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
The Punisher’s inclusion in Spider-Man: Brand New Day finally brings a classic comic book dynamic to the big screen. Frank Castle’s very first comic book appearance was in The Amazing Spider-Man #129 in 1974. In that issue, he was introduced as an antagonist, hired by the villain Jackal to assassinate Spider-Man, whom he mistakenly believed was a murderer. This established a complicated history between the two characters, who often find themselves at odds over their drastically different methods of crime-fighting, even when forced to work together against a common enemy.
According to Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige, bringing Punisher into Spider-Man’s world is a direct result of the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home. “[As] sad as it is that Peter is forgotten by everyone in his life, we are seeing, for the first time in the Tom Holland Spider-Man stories, him being a proper Spider-Man,” Feige told ComicBook. “Him being by himself, dedicated to saving the city, and dealing with, for lack of a better term, street-level crime.” This new focus for Peter Parker opens the door for interactions with other street-level characters. “So when you do that, you say, ‘Okay, who are the other street-level characters that we’ve never seen him interact with?’” Feige stated. “And of course, I love that Punisher started in a Spider-Man comic, and that great cover.”
Spider-Man: Brand New Day, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, is shaping up to be a packed street-level epic. It was recently confirmed that Ruffalo will appear as the Hulk and Michael Mando will reprise his role as Mac Gargan, also known as the Scorpion, from Spider-Man: Homecoming. Plot details are still under wraps, but the inclusion of characters like Punisher and Scorpion, along with rumors of other crime-related villains like Tombstone, suggests Peter will be dealing with the city’s criminal underbelly. This marks the first time a cinematic version of Spider-Man and the Punisher will cross paths, fulfilling a long-held fan desire and grounding the web-slinger in a grittier corner of the MCU.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is scheduled to be released in theaters on July 31, 2026, while the Punisher Special Presentation is expected to premiere on Disney+ in 2026.
What are you most excited to see in the Punisher’s MCU return? Let us know in the comments!
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