Frank Castle is stepping back into the fight—and this time, he’s bringing every ounce of darkness with him. After years of rumors and persistent fan campaigns, Jon Bernthal’s take on the Punisher is officially returning to the MCU in a Disney+ Special Presentation. But this isn’t just another Marvel project on the assembly line.
For Bernthal, it’s a deeply personal mission. Not only is he gearing up once more as Frank Castle, but he’s co-penning the script with director Reinaldo Marcus Green, his creative collaborator on HBO’s We Own This City. Their past work indicates this Punisher won’t be watered down for the streaming audience—it will be raw, intense, and unflinching.
The tone? As far removed from “festive” as possible. Bernthal has been adamant about his commitment to getting the character right, explaining to The Hollywood Reporter that this take won’t be “Punisher-lite.” He’s vowed a heavy, difficult, and grounded story, saying he’s “beyond honored and grateful” to bring Castle’s universe back to life.
Marvel isn’t holding back on the gritty roots of the character. In Bernthal’s own words, Frank Castle “has no interest in unleashing the darkness.”
The endeavor seeks to infuse the same gritty and emotional heft that characterized the Netflix series, equal measures of unflinching brutality and hard-hitting drama. Marvel Television’s Brad Winderbaum characterized it as “a shotgun blast of a story” filled with the pathos and moral depth that makes Castle perhaps the most fascinating antihero in the Marvel stable.
The special also connects directly to Daredevil: Born Again, which has been described as a return to the grounded, layered storytelling of Netflix days. In the series, Matt Murdock is matched against Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk, now mayor of New York and in charge of an Anti-Vigilante Task Force.
Castle is a reluctant partner, doing the jobs Murdock won’t do. After Born Again, Frank remains alive but in hiding, and the stage is set beautifully for his solo adventure.
There is also going to be some new stuff in Castle’s universe. It is reported that the season’s main villain will be a female crime lord—a first for Bernthal’s Punisher. Rumors suggest Ma Gnucci, the violent boss of the Gnucci Crime Family from Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s classic “Welcome Back, Frank” storyline. Famous for its unhinged combination of extreme violence and dark humor, the story would be an unconventional pick for the MCU. Although the Gnucci family has been name-checked previously, Ma herself has yet to appear on camera—if she is the villain that everyone suspects, the showdown is going to be ugly and intimate.
Shooting has already concluded, with Bernthal giving an emotional, profanity-filled address to the crew, deeming the project “impossible” but expressing joy that they “really f***ing did it.” Supporting cast for the season includes Roe Rancell as new character Dennis and Jason R. Moore returning as Curtis Hoyle.
Behind-the-scenes photos suggest explosive action sequences and a fresh aesthetic for the Punisher. The special will premiere on Disney+ in 2026 alongside Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, rated TV-MA—making it the MCU’s most grown-up take on the character to date.
For those who’ve been with Bernthal’s Frank Castle since his debut on Daredevil to two dark solo seasons, this special will feel like a culmination. It’s reuniting everything that made the character work—his unrelenting pursuit of justice, his moral ambiguity, and his unwillingness to turn a blind eye toward the darker aspects of society.
With Bernthal in the back room guiding the story, Marvel’s street-level universe is about to get more treacherous, more authentic, and more real than ever.