By Collier Jennings Published Nov 1, 2026, 1:30 AM EDT Collier Jennings is an entertainment journalist with extensive experience. Collier, or "CJ" to his friends and family, is a dedicated fan of genre films - particularly science fiction, fantasy, and comic book adaptations, not to mention all forms of animation. This stems from a close bond with his father, who introduced him to these genres via copies of X-Men comics and reruns of the original Ultraman series. With his near-encyclopedic knowledge and bottomless love of genre, he's tackled a wide variety of articles. FYI One batch, two batch, penny and dime
Jon Bernthal returns as the Punisher in 'Daredevil: Born Again' Image: Disney+/Marvel Television Add Polygon.com on Google Add as Preferred Source Follow on Google Discover Sign in to your Polygon.com account Summary Generate a summary of this story Like Like follow Follow followed Followed Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap Ever since superhero movies and television became popular, fans have debated which actors are the perfect fit for their characters. The debate has escalated over the years, especially when multiple actors have played iconic characters like Superman and Spider-Man . Nine years ago, one of the best actor-to-character pairings came when Jon Bernthal took on Frank Castle in The Punisher . In the process, Bernthal delivered one of the grittiest and most action -packed comic book adaptations in history.
Bernthal first played Castle in Daredevil , where he laid the groundwork for his eventual solo debut. There, he embarked on a hunt for the men who killed his wife and children, coming to physical and moral blows with Matt Murdock along the way. The Punisher continues this character journey, but throws a few wrinkles into Frank's way: a partner in tech expert David Liberman, aka "Micro" (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), the return of fellow soldier Billy Russo (Ben Barnes), and Dinah Madani (Amber Rose Revah), a Homeland Security agent determined to bring him in.
Image: Columbia Pictures Part of the appeal of the Punisher is that, unlike other Marvel characters, he has no special abilities; he relies mostly on his military training and arsenal of firearms to deliver his own brand of justice to the wicked. Yet he also realizes that no matter how many criminals he kills, it won't fill the void within him. In the afterword to Punisher: The King of Killers , Jason Aaron argues that Frank Castle's life is a tragedy. The Punisher series deals with this, showing that Castle suffers immense PTSD from his time as a soldier in addition to the loss of his family, and that he only truly feels at peace when he slaughters the wicked. Bernthal expanded upon this in an interview, saying that it's what drove him to play the character :
"He ain't got a fing cape. He ain't got any superpowers. He's a fing tortured, angry father and husband who's living in this unbelievable world of darkness and loss and torment."
Both seasons of The Punisher also give Castle plenty of chances to vent his fury upon the guilty. In Season 1, it's revealed that Russo is behind the events that led to Castle's family's deaths, and Castle eventually takes his revenge by grinding his former friend's face into a mirror. This doesn't kill Russo, but transforms him into the heavily scarred villain Jigsaw. That scene also one of many blood-soak…