Finally, the question that Marvel fans had been asking themselves for so long — “is The Punisher” coming back, has been answered. The information as of April 2025 is a resounding yes. The daredevil himself, Jon Bernthal, will star in his famous character as Frank Castle in the Marvel’s future projects. The first appearance of the comeback is in the form of the movie “Daredevil: Born Again” after which the new Marvel Special Presentation that would come out in 2026 will take over the story and activities of the character.
Jon Bernthal Returns in Daredevil: Born Again
Bernthal, who said goodbye to the role of The Punisher in the Netflix series that was canceled in 2019, has met again with the Marvel Cinematic Universe through Disney+. He will play the role of Frank Castle (The Punisher) in Episode 4 of Daredevil: Born Again, a new set of episodes of which Charlie Cox will be the main character as Matt Murdock.
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On this occasion, Castle confronts a dangerous situation with Daredevil, making a great and exciting meeting, full of emotion and action, for the fans of the series. As was stated in the articles on Business Insider, Bernthal was first not convinced.
Nevertheless, Marvel went on to change its mind. It became clear that the team of artists who created the project and Jon realized that the severity and the realism that resonated with the fans of the old Netflix show were still present in the character would be a success if they wanted to reach out to the audience. Still, they decided to bring back the character and this decision made and convinced Bernthal to remain in the character.
Marvel Planning Standalone Punisher Special
From the moment we first hear of Daredevil: Born Again, it is clear that Marvel Studios will release a special series for The Punisher. It was indicated by way of gamesradar that a Punisher special was in the works. Given that the report that the
In 2026, GamesRadar has learned that a new Punisher Special Presentation will be launched on Disney+. The event will be included in Marvel’s “Special Presentations” line of projects; the same one that had the Werewolf by Night mini-series among others.
This special is not going to be a full-fledged series, but it’s going to be a one-off episode with a focused story. Bernthal is not just going to play a lead role in the project — the actor is going to share the writing credits as well. The special is expected to be directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, known for films like King Richard.
The project is set to deliver a story that is darker, more down-to-earth, and yet faithful to the psychological rebirth of Frank Castle, his torture, his anger, and his quest for justice. The mood, according to the sources, will be darker and sadder than the kind of Marvel series we are used to.”
What This Means for the MCU
Publishing another The Punisher work means that Marvel Studios is evidently altering the way they handle the subject of mature characters. Disney+ has been criticized for making it look like the once-violent or the once-complex humans had become family-friendly denizens of the streaming platform.
That Marvel is bringing back Bernthal, whose Punisher is a charter member of the original brutal and ethically ambiguous cast of characters, would suggest a certain openness of Marvel Studios to dig deeper into its stories. If it turns out okay, Marvel might use it as an opportunity to embrace even more serious storylines or to rehire dark characters such as Jessica Jones or Luke Cage.
Theoretically, it is also a new beginning for crossovers. If we were to hypothetically mention Daredevil, Kingpin, and now The Punisher, all of them being part of the Disney+ timeline, then Marvel could be preparing the ground for a street-level Avengers team or the inclusion of characters from the Netflix period under a single scenario.
Fans React to The Punisher’s Return
Most of the reaction on the internet has been positive. People who have been watching the show since the beginning believe that Bernthal’s portrayal of Frank Castle is irreplaceable. A lot of them were worried that Marvel would turn to a softer, less intense version of the character.
Fans, who are everywhere on social media, could not contain their emotions as soon as they saw him on Daredevil: Born Again, and they continued to do so as soon as the show ended, sharing their love for the actor and their darker vision of the show they loved so much.
Despite Marvel not announcing when the stand-alone Punisher special will be released, everyone is convinced the promotional campaign for that will be a part of the 2026 Disney+ lineup.
Yes, The Punisher is definitely back but that does not mean that Marvel has settled with the previous tone; the company is going even darker, further, and more real, and Jon Bernthal is the one behind what’s happening.
