Will Punisher Get A Spinoff?

Admit it, you binge-watched the second season of Marvel Television and Netflix’s Daredevil, and your favorite part of this season was the Punisher. It’s ok to admit it; his take-no-prisoners method and compelling need for revenge are some of the most exciting plot devices on the show. Well, if this is true and you are a fan of Jon Bernthal’s portrayal of the Punisher, you are hardly alone. He is the main topic of conversation amongst the show’s loyal devotees; and whether you love this season, or think the first season was stronger, you have to agree that Bernthal’s performance as the titular anti-hero is fantastic. Since the Punisher has developed an instant following, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that Marvel will likely try to capitalize on his popularity. Earlier this year The Hollywood Reporter released an article saying that there were whispers of Marvel extending their partnership with Netflix to produce a Punisher spin-off with Bernthal playing the lead of course, but more recently IGN has reported that Marvel Television’s executive vice president Jeph Loeb denied the rumors.

Courtesy of Netflix. Punisher’s character poster.

It’s a natural progression to leverage the astronomical success of the character into his own show, after all, the Punisher was a massively popular character in the comics in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s when violence was what really drove the comic market. During a time when comics were struggling, Marvel kept afloat by pushing morally ambiguous characters into the spotlight and selling the big action sequences that they provoked. Characters like Deadpool, Wolverine, Cable, and Deathlok joined the Punisher on covers and as guest stars in multiple titles to help boost sales. Netflix’s Daredevil hardly needed another selling point, regardless, Bernthal’s Punisher is a welcome addition to the character-driven show. He is a perfect foil to Charlie Cox’s morally righteous Daredevil and injects a dynamic and sympathetic human story as well as a good amount of pulse-pounding, visceral action.

Courtesy of Netflix. Jon Bernthal as the Punisher.

So will we see a spinoff, or won’t we? At this point, it’s difficult to tell. The current series are being produced on a big Hollywood budget and working on a very tight schedule considering there are still plans to introduce Luke Cage and Iron Fist in their own series before joining all four title characters into The Defenders. The investment of money and time being made in the existing shows makes it hard to squeeze anything new into the roster, but it would be foolish to ignore the hold that the Punisher has on the audience. There is no doubt that Marvel Television will harness his appeal again, but whether they will do so by throwing him into another show, or giving him his own is too tough to tell just now. So take this opportunity to soak up all of the blood and mayhem in Daredevil season 2 on Netflix now.