Jon Bernthal to Reprise His Role as The Punisher in Daredevil: Born Again

Jon Bernthal will be playing Frank Castle in the MCU’s Daredevil series, but it may be bad news for other former Netflix stars.

After being rumored for some time it looks like Daredevil: Born Again will see the return of Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle aka The Punisher. According to The Hollywood Reporter Bernthal will be returning to the Marvel fold with Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio, but for fans of Netflix’s The Punisher, it doesn’t look like there is good news regarding other stars from that series.

Charlie Cox previously said that he would be spending much of the year filming Daredevil: Born Again, and as production moves into gear on the 18-episode Disney+ show it seems that Bernthal’s return hints at the darker route the MCU series will be taking. However, Cox also suggested that the series will not be a bloody or violent as the Netflix series that ran for three seasons. Although there has been no confirmation or comment on Bernthal’s return, this may not be good news for those hoping to see Krysten Ritter returning as Jessica Jones as it was rumored last September that Bernthal was being added in her place in the series.

Fans have been pleading for the return of the Netflix characters, and the actors who played them, but as usual, Marvel are not exactly forthcoming with such information. Ever since Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio appeared in Spider-Man: No Way Home and Hawkeye respectively, it has been hard to believe that other characters would not be side-shifting into the MCU at some point in the near future.

Jon Bernthal’s Punisher Co-Stars Don’t Appear To Be Returning for Daredevil: Born Again.

The return of Jon Bernthal immediately suggested that other stars from The Punisher could be following him into the Marvel Studios world. However, there is apparently no expectation of either Elden Henson’s Foggy Nelson or Deborah Ann Woll’s Karen Page will be making an appearance in the series. Previously Woll expressed her interest in reprising her role in the MCU. When asked whether she was done in the franchise, Woll previously said:

“I would say no, partially because the Marvel series feel unfinished to me because we got canceled when we thought we were going to have more. There’s a part of me that was like, ‘I had more to say about Karen,’ and I felt I was in the middle of that story. Whereas True Blood, for all its ups and downs, and triumphs and flaws, we did get to wrap it up. I knew that we were wrapping it up, and I could say goodbye to everyone. I stole something from the set. I didn’t get to steal anything from our Daredevil set! I didn’t get to say goodbye to the crew because we all thought we were coming back. So that’s really what I would want back, and I wouldn’t have all of that back, obviously.”

While there is always still a chance of other Netflix stars appearing in either Daredevil: Born Again, or even another MCU project in future, many such returns are the kind that Marvel like to keep to themselves until they want the world to know about it.