Ever since Netflix pulled the plug on its various Marvel shows, there have been consistent rumours claiming that Marvel Studios could be looking to incorporate The Defenders into the Marvel Cinematic Universe proper, and with Kevin Feige confirming today that Daredevil star Charlie Cox is indeed set to continue as the Man Without Fear, the question now turns to which other Netflix cast members could be following him into the MCU.
Speculation has been rife that Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk will emerge as the Big Bad of Hawkeye on Disney+, and there’s also been rumours of Krysten Ritter returning as Jessica Jones in the She-Hulk series. And, on top of that, there’s now sure to be heavy demand for Jon Bernthal to follow suit and reprise his fan favourite role as Frank Castle, a.k.a. The Punisher.
Bernthal has frequently spoken of his love for the character and the connection he feels with the role and the fans, and speaking to THR recently, the former Walking Dead star has admitted that he is open to a return – but only if it is “done right”.
“I’m enormously protective of that character,” said Bernthal. “I’ve said before that there’s nothing in this world more important to me than my wife and my kids, and only until you understand that kind of love and what it really means to willingly die for somebody, what it would be like if somebody took them from you. That’s a road and a darkness and a rage that really, really scares me and brings me to places that I’ve worked the last 20 years to get away from. So I was really grateful, respectful and weary of the places where that role took me and the world in which I had to live in.”
“That being said, that’s where that character needs to be,” he continued. “It needs to be a level of darkness. I think if there’s any let up on that character, you do a disservice to the character, to every iteration of the character, to every comic book that’s come before, and to all of the unbelievable fans of the character. This character means so much to people in the military. So like I said before, it’s not about whether you do the character; it’s about whether you can do it right, and I’m only interested in doing it right.”
As yet, Marvel hasn’t ventured beyond the boundaries of PG-13, and so it remains to be seen how effectively Bernthal’s Punisher could be incorporated into the MCU without being toned down too much. However, Deadpool 3 looks set to retain the series’ R-rating, and the shift into television on Disney+ certainly allows for the studio to experiment with some darker material under a kind of ‘Marvel Knights’ banner should it decide to go down that route. Is that something you’d like to see? Let us know your thoughts on our social channels @FlickeringMyth…
