A major character in the Marvel canon will be joining Daredevil when the Netflix series returns next year.
Marvel announced that Walking Dead alum Jon Bernthal has been cast to play Frank Castle, otherwise known as The Punisher, on the second season of Daredevil. Like Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdoch/Daredevil, The Punisher is a vigilante who aims to clean up New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen by any means necessary, no matter how lethal the results.
This will be the fourth time the famous Marvel anti-hero will be played on screen and the first time a live-action version will appear on TV. Dolph Lundgren, Thomas Jane and Ray Stevenson have each taken turns playing the character.
“Jon Bernthal brings an unmatched intensity to every role he takes on, with a potent blend of power, motivation and vulnerability that will connect with audiences,” said Jeph Loeb, Marvel’s Head of Television. “Castle’s appearance will bring dramatic changes to the world of Matt Murdock and nothing will be the same.” Bernthal is best known for playing Shane Walsh on the first two seasons of AMC’s The Walking Dead; he also starred in TNT’s short-lived Mob City and films The Wolf of Wall Street and Fury.
Daredevil’s second season will be released in 2016, which will see Doug Petrie and Marco Ramirez take over for Steven DeKnight as showrunners. Netflix will release its second Marvel series, Jessica Jones later this year.
