Jon Bernthal’s Punisher, who first made an appearance in the critically acclaimed Marvel x Netflix series, Daredevil in its second season, made an ineffaceable impression on the mind of an audience still fascinated by the gritty street fights and unforgiving knuckles of the Man Without Fear.
In the aftermath of the blown apart Hell’s Kitchen and the eradicated crime districts along with the men who control them, the Punisher stepped away from the territory that only belonged to the Devil, looking to deliver his justice upon the damned elsewhere. And that path might just have led him to HYDRA during the events of The Winter Soldier.
Russo Brothers’ Talk About Punisher’s Cameo in MCU
Captain America: The Winter Soldier directors, the Russo Brothers, in the aftermath of the film’s premiere dropped a major hint about Jon Bernthal’s Marvel character, Punisher’s presence in the mainstream continuity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The anti-hero, who lived every day in extreme pain and under the strain of constantly re-experiencing trauma since the day of his family’s mindless massacre at the park, went on an epic killing spree – taking out gangs and mobs around New York almost overnight.
Also read: Marvel Will Change The Punisher And Here’s Why
The attention that the act brought upon him thrust him into a morally grey world where lines were blurred and morality was questioned. Bernthal’s Frank Castle was not only able to pull at the audience’s heartstrings against their better judgment but that of the people living within that world, including and especially Karen Page. However, after his departure from within that world, Frank Castle was a shadow, neither seen nor heard of, until he resurfaced again, according to the Russos, in Washington DC during the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Jon Bernthal’s Punisher Inducted Into the Mainstream MCU
According to the theory proposed by the Russo Brothers, the Jon Bernthal cameo was one of the many subtle Easter Eggs that Marvel likes to plant within their universe to later utilize to the advantage of their plot’s progression. Although the presence of the Punisher does nothing to help the plot at such a major scale as the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, it can still cause enough of a ripple effect to change the tides of a battle, if not the war itself. In an interview in 2014, Joe Russo indicated that the events that led to the death of HYDRA loyalist and long-term SHIELD agent, Jasper Sitwell, had a subtle involvement from the Punisher himself.
In the film, in a mission to expose and take down HYDRA, Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, and Natasha Romanoff uncover Sitwell’s true allegiance to the organization and take him with them after learning of Project Insight and Alexander Pierce’s involvement with it. However, while the trio heads toward the Triskelion, they encounter the Winter Soldier who has been ordered to take out Sitwell. As the latter gets yanked out of the car and thrown onto oncoming traffic, a yellow Penske semi-truck runs him over before the battle on the highway can begin eventually revealing the Winter Soldier’s true identity to Steve Rogers.
The driver of that semi-truck was identified as Frank Castle aka Jon Bernthal’s Punisher by Joe Russo, who also claimed they are keeping the numerous possibilities of the Punisher’s presence open-ended for the time being, so the studio could utilize him in an arc when and where required. With the Punisher’s upcoming arrival in Daredevil: Born Again, it seems the MCU events that tie the Netflix universe to the mainstream continuity have largely been kept out of the loop so as to not further confuse the audience.
The Punisher is currently available for streaming on Disney+.
Daredevil: Born Again’s production has been suspended temporarily due to the currently ongoing WGA strike.
Source: Screen Rant
