When Jon Bernthal was cast as the Punisher in 2015 for the Netflix series, Daredevil, fans were thrilled. The character is an antihero, hell-bent on stopping crime by any means necessary, and one of Marvel’s best. Bernthal brings his all to the role, and it’s hard not to have a soft spot for Frank Castle; it’s hard to see the Punisher and not want to root for him a little bit.
Bernthal’s performance was so gripping that people wanted to see more of him as the character, so a series that focused on the Punisher was ordered and aired on Netflix began airing November 17th, 2017. The Punisher did so well that the raving reviews continued, and a second season was ordered. Unfortunately, it didn’t progress past that on Netflix.
That doesn’t mean that fans have had their fill of Bernthal as Frank Castle yet.
ScreenRant recently hosted Bernthal, John Pollono, and Shea Whigham for an interview on their upcoming project, Small Engine Repair. They asked him about reprising his role as Castle, and he had this to say in response.
“You know, we’ll see, I mean, honestly, I don’t think about it very much. I’m really happy — look, we’re all enormously blessed to be doing this. I can say for the other guys that you’re talking to as well, we really love this. We really love doing this. We work hard at it, we support our families by it, through it, but we never lose touch just how grateful we are to be in the position that we are that we get to do this for a living. I like to do this. I like to work with people I really respect and love and admire and make stuff with. This kind of project is precisely, it’s exactly the kind of stuff I want to be doing. So, whatever else comes, you know, kind of down the road, comes. But, this is something that’s really worth celebrating.”
Bernthal loves acting, its art, the projects he can complete, and the work he does as an entertainer. Frank Castle is an incredible role, but the other projects Bernthal takes on are equally as important. We love the gratitude he shows and the way he frames things in the now.
Of course, fans are also excited to see that he’s open to the idea of returning to the role. Here’s hoping that with the MCU expanding, there will be a spot for Bernthal as Castle if it’s something he’s still passionate about, too.