Jon Bernthal returns as the vengeful Punisher in Daredevil: Born Again, and this could be just the start of his journey into the main MCU.
Punisher first appeared in Daredevil season two where he went after the Irish mob for their involvement in his family’s death. Matt Murdock defended Castle in court, and after the two reconciled their differences, Frank went on to star in his own series for two seasons where he uncovered who was actually behind his worst tragedy. The Punisher will have a role in Daredevil: Born Again, and it’s possible his storyline could involve Kingpin. After the Punisher is finished with Daredevil’s new series, he could still find his way into these other MCU projects.
Captain America: New World Order
Captain America: New World Order is set to come out around the same time as Daredevil: Born Again, and it could be the perfect follow-up. In the finale of Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Sam Wilson dons the new winged Captain America suit and stops Karli Morgenthau and her Flag Smashers’ attack against the Global Repatriation Council (GRC), but the geopolitical landscape is anything but solid. Sharon Carter is revealed to be the Power Broker, John Walker/U.S. Agent has joined Valentina Allegra de Fontaine’s group, and the GRC agreed to postpone its vote on the Patch Act, which would relocate refugees following the Blip. New World Order will pick up on these political threads, and that’s where the Punisher could come in.
Frank Castle has been entrenched in governmental malfeasance. He was part of a covert military operation called Operation Cerberus designed to torture and eliminate high-value targets stationed in Afghanistan. He and his fellow soldiers believed it was above board, but he later learned this was a terrorist cell funded by drugs. Castle’s family was killed because powerful men believed he would expose their operation, and Castle’s mission was to find the people responsible. Captain America: Winter Soldier was all about HYDRA having infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D., and it’s something Sam will still need to be vigilant of with all the recent developments in TFatWS. Punisher would be a good ally for Sam to have, and he could clue the new Cap in about what he knows.
Thunderbolts
The Thunderbolts movie will see Valentina put together a team of anti-heroes, which include Yelena Belova, Ghost, Red Guardian, Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, U.S. Agent, and Taskmaster. This will continue Valentina’s story from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where she worked to steal Vibranium from Wakanda. She could be using this team to succeed in her aims, either by reframing her motivations or keeping them blind to the entirety of the plan. A few of these heroes lean more on the heroic side of the divide, like Bucky who has a direct connection to Wakanda and wouldn’t want to betray their trust, while Yelena has shown that she listens to reason, which is why she doesn’t go through with killing Clint Barton in Hawkeye.
The Punisher is definitely an anti-hero and could be someone Valentina has her eyes on as a possible candidate for her Thunderbolts team. He’s a man who’s competent at getting the job done and doesn’t mind getting his hands bloody, and she could try to enlist him as a valuable asset — though it’s not likely he’ll join her given his own history with teams. He wouldn’t want to be a pawn. Instead, he could work to undo Valentina’s plans, given the Punisher’s aversion to overreaching governmental powers. It would give him a new mission now that he’s accomplished finding those responsible for killing his family and prevent the same thing from happening to someone else.
Blade
The Blade movie starring Mahershala Ali will be a revamped origin story. While Eric Brooks’ mother was pregnant with him, she was bitten by a vampire and before she died, she gave birth to a hybrid baby. The baby grew up to become Blade, a half-human and half-vampire vigilante with Daywalker abilities who hunts other vampires. Although the movie has had a change in directors and reported casting changes, the new Blade movie does have a shooting date, so hope is not yet lost.
Punisher’s tone fits very well with Blade’s. They’re two hardcore vigilantes who don’t take it easy on their enemies. While other heroes would disapprove of their more violent methods, the two of them would likely get along and have mutual respect for one another. The two have both been a part of the Midnight Sons, so if MCU chooses to greenlight that project, they could be working on the same side against a dark threat.
Or it could also go in the other direction and they could be pitted against each other like in Marvel Team-Up #8 (2005) by Robert Kirkman and Jeff Johnson. In this story, Blade is spying on a gun deal between thugs and vampires when Punisher appears. Blade smells him before he sees him and the two have a standoff. When Blade turns his back, the Punisher shoots him, but with Blade being a vampire, it doesn’t kill him. A fight between them could be just as interesting as a partnership.
Deadpool 3
Deadpool 3 might seem like an unlikely place for Pnisher to show up, but when it comes to the multiverse, anything is possible. Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool is already meeting another no-holds-barred man, and Punisher could make for another. The movie will have Deadpool traveling through time to team up with Wolverine to battle a powerful enemy, and the mismatched pair’s dynamic is already playing out between Reynolds and Jackman with their back-and-forth conversations on social media.
This will bring Deadpool into the main MCU, similar to how the likes of Punisher, Daredevil, and Jessica Jones are being brought in. When they were on Netflix, there was virtually no interaction between those shows and the main MCU, and this movie would present an opportunity for Deadpool and Wolverine to collaborate with fan-favorite Punisher, and make some meta jokes about how Frank Castle hasn’t been involved with other characters in the MCU.