Jon Bernthal getting a Punisher movie is a gift to fans of the comic book and the actor

With no offense to Thomas Jane and Ray Stevenson, he is Frank Castle.

Jon Bernthal can play many things, but rage is near the top of the list of his explosive on screen qualities. I can’t get enough. For all the passivity of a talent like David Strathairn, you need a boiling pot of water like the Bernthal. Take a look before I continue.

The story of Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, fits the mold of Bernthal like a glove that wasn’t tried on by O.J. Simpson. The simmering rage of a father and husband who lost his wife and child to the exact people whom he hunts can’t be an arbitrary or mundane outcry. Silent yet deadly doesn’t exactly cut it like the late, great Ray Stevenson tried in his terribly written movie. It’s not sleepy bravado like Thomas Jane’s avenger, and Dolph Lundgren was overshadowed by Louis Gossett Jr. in his 90s movie.

Bernthal tapped directly into the inferno of Castle’s forever war: One man setting things right yet living with angst and blame to the end. In two seasons on Netflix (now Disney+) and part of two seasons teamed up with Charlie Cox’s Daredevil (the second of which premiered this month), the seasoned actor crawled right into the headspace of the former FBI agent-turned-killer. It’s a righteous rage after all; Castle is eliminating mob associates, henchmen, bosses, and anyone else who walks across the street from good intentions.

With the news that Bernthal is getting a Punisher movie, fans of the actor and comic can rejoice. Instead of being stretched out to an entire season’s worth of episodes that may eventually dilute the message, this will be a precise kill shot practice. One movie, like one bullet, should do the trick. Disney and Marvel are calling it a Christmas special; I think of it as a very early holiday gift. What I’ve always wanted is happening, and it’s coming in a form that will work well for the cast and crew.

Bernthal recruited his We Own This City (fans of The Wire shouldn’t miss this criminally overlooked HBO Max series) director and pal, Reinaldo Marcus Green. He is the filmmaker behind the award-winning Will Smith movie, King Richard. Green’s last film was about the great Bob Marley, but don’t worry, Castle fans, everything will be alright with him tackling the madness of Marvel’s darkest knight.

The sophistication of someone who made Joe Bell and Monsters and Men will come in handy for an action blast dish like a night out with The Punisher. The warmth of a good director comes in handy when attempting to serve a revenge dish straight up cold. Bernthal has a familiarity with Green; the two are penning the script together in what they told the press should feel like a Christmas special shotgun blast of entertainment. Well, colored me tickled and thirsty for Castle vengeance.

Resisting the urge to ask the Disney brass for a full season took panache and confidence, something that few creators and showrunners have in their brain capacity these days. Who really needs 8-12 hours of Castle busting up bad guys, himself, and ripping apart his beautiful past? No thanks. Give me a stiff, three-finger glass of action bourbon and make sure the glass is chilled.

This is the best kind of news. An actor born to play a role getting his own slice of movie heaven served up right. Instead of too much fluff or the wrong mix of performer/script, the guy playing the part will help write the lines that come out of his mouth. Bernthal is an accomplished actor, but his writing journey is still young.

Let’s hope it matches the hype of a project that looks like a pitch black skyscraper. right now.