With Marvel’s Daredevil enjoying considerable success and praise by fans who are trending the show on all the top social sites its possible Netflix is already looking towards the next phase with a series based on another gritty character – Frank Castle, aka The Punisher.
According to the aptly titled Vigilantist, a source within the Netflix camp has leaked information that suggests that The Punisher will feature as part of a ‘Phase 2’ for the Marvel TV shows on the streaming service – much like the way movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe are released.Co-incidentally Daredevil and other upcoming comic adaptations including AKA Jessica Jones, Iron Fist and Luke Cage are all set in the same reality as films such as the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy. If you’re a comics fan we think you’ll agree the potential for never-before-seen on-screen crossovers is beyond exciting.
There’s a lot to live up to for any Marvel/Netflix Original that looks to follow Daredevil but with similarly mature storylines and violent action – including an origin where his wife and children were shot dead in New York’s Central Park – we think The Punisher might be the one to stand up to the challenge.
Like Daredevil, which will get a second season in 2016, The Punisher is another comic anti-hero who has struggled to gain credibility on film and has appeared in three unconnected movies. Frank Castle was first played by Dolph Lundgren in 1989, then in 2004 he was brought back by Thomas Jane, and in 2008 Ray Stevenson was the last actor to bear on the iconic skull on his chest.
File securely under Rumour for now but we really hope The Punisher comes out fighting in a Marvel/Netflix Phase 2.