Reinaldo Marcus Green To Team With Jon Bernthal On Disney+ ‘Punisher’ Special

The Punisher special at Disney+ is further along than initially envisioned, with a director, Reinaldo Marcus Green, and writers already attached to the project.

The world of the Defenders, as created by Netflix and Marvel Television, is finally back and it’s bigger than ever. From the poorly received miniseries Echo, to the many appearances of Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox), to the Daredevil revival series Daredevil: Born Again, fans are elated. In Daredevil: Born Again not only will we see the return of The Devil of Hell’s Kitchen, Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio, Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson), Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll), and Bullseye (Wilson Bethel), but we will also see the long-awaited return of Jon Bernthal’s Punisher.

Frank Castle, later known as The Punisher, first debuted in Netflix’s Daredevil season 2. In that show he was on a warpath, murdering members of three different gangs for their involvement in the murder of his family, leading him to fight Daredevil, later befriending him giving him the nickname “Red.” The character would appear for twelve out of thirteen episodes in the season and went on to receive his own spin-off series with two seasons of content. Since then, however, we have not seen the character. That is until we learned that he would return for Daredevil: Born Again season 1. While details are slim, we know that Matt Murdock goes to him in the season to request his help for something he is unable to do. 

Now, following yesterday’s news of a Punisher special being developed by star Jon Bernthal, we finally have some more details. Entertainment Weekly exclusively revealed the team behind the special is none other than Reinaldo Marcus Green and Jon Bernthal, who will co-write the special presentation for Marvel Studios and Disney+. Marcus Green is also set to direct the special, marking his first collaboration with Marvel Studios and his third with Bernthal. The two have previously collaborated on Marcus Green’s Best Picture Academy Award-nominated feature King Richard and the series We Own This City. The move will mark Bernthal’s writing debut, having not previously written a project despite his extensive filmography. 

The Hollywood Reporter, when reporting on the news, also shared the detail that the special is expected to be released in 2026. Daredevil: Born Again season 2 is also slated for release in 2026, and is about to begin filming this Friday, so it is possible the Punisher special is getting ready to film. Jon Bernthal is also currently prepping to film scenes for Christopher Nolan’s next film, The Odyssey, where he will be starring alongside Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Charlize Theron, and many more.

No plot details are available for the special presentation but we can expect to learn more, as production for the special ramps up.

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