Hell’s Kitchen is about to get itself a second vigilante. When Netflix’s Daredevil returns for Season 2, the eponymous hero will have to contend with Frank Castle, a.k.a. The Punisher, played by Fury’s Jon Bernthal. Excitement was rampant when Punisher was announced, especially since many fans have been waiting to see him in the MCU following Marvel reacquiring the rights from Lions Gate Entertainment in 2010. Details are still scarce on precisely what this iteration of Punisher will be like, but according to former Daredevil showrunner Steven DeKnight, this will be the most faithful interpretation of the character seen in live action.
Despite not being the guy in charge anymore, DeKnight is still privy to what’s happening with Daredevil’s future, and during an interview with Slash Film, he mentioned that the series will provide fans with the most “Marvel” Punisher yet. According to DeKnight:
The thing about The Punisher, and I think there are great things about each of those versions, but none of them was completely the Marvel version. And none of those movies were under the Marvel Studios banner until they recently got The Punisher back. So this is really the first time that we’re seeing the Marvel Studios from the Iron Man days, when they can control their own product, actually do this character.
Daredevil Season 1 proved that Netflix is a safe haven for Marvel to tell darker stories not appropriate for their younger audiences, which is why it’s the perfect place to introduce the MCU’s Punisher, who, just like his comic book counterpart, has no problems massacring criminals on his unique mission of justice. Plus, depending on the reception he gets from fans and critics next year, there’s always the possibility that Netflix could give Punisher a spinoff series so he can go adventuring on his own.
However, if you enjoyed the heavy violence and brutality of the previous Punisher films (especially 2008’s Punisher: War Zone), DeKnight did warn that Bernthal’s Punisher won’t be as graphic as his cinematic counterparts.
The first season of Daredevil was violent but I always say it was more implied. It wasn’t nearly as violent as The Walking Dead, a show that I love. On that, if somebody were to crush somebody’s head in a car door, you would’ve seen the head crush on screen but we didn’t want to go quite that far. We wanted to keep it right around PG-16 and not go all the way to the R. I have no idea if they’re planning to push it that far next season but I would be surprised.
Daredevil and Punisher have a long history of fighting each other in the comics, and that will continue in live-action with their fight supposedly being the primary conflict in Season 2. Punisher was the first new character to be announced for Daredevil’s second season, and he will be joined by Matt Murdock’s old flame Elektra, played by Elodie Yung.
Daredevil Season 2 will air on Netflix sometime in 2016.
