Daredevil Jon Bernthal interview: 'Went to a dark place' for Punisher
Former The Walking Dead star Jon Bernthal went to “dark of place as possible” to bring to life the iconic Marvel character The Punisher in season 2 of Netflix’s Daredevil. Below the actor breaks his silence on playing Frank Castle, the ex-military veteran who uses an arsenal of weapons to wipe out crime by any means necessary. Netflix was so impressed by his performance, they’re even reportedly developing a Punisher spinoff series starring the actor (we hear it’s rather early in the process). Note: While Bernthal is careful not to reveal any Daredevil spoilers, he does reference Castle’s tragic backstory from the comics and previous adapations.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: What drew you to this part?
JON BERNTHAL: I was a big fan of the first season. I love the way the first season attacks the comic world and it did it with authenticity. And obviously this is a character that’s resonated for a long time. It’s an important character, it’s one I’m honored to play. This is a guy who means a lot to a lot of people and his character has resonate with law enforcement and military. People have been coming up to me on the streets of New York saying, “Do not mess this up.”
How do you see Frank Castle? As a man who put his on the line and really went through the ultimate sacrifice for this country in his involvement in the military. He’s a guy who brought the war home with him [in] the worst possible way. There are a lot of iterations of this character and in all of them it’s a man who’s gone through this unbelievable trauma and what’s interesting about our take on him is how this trauma reshapes his own philosophy. I can’t give too much away, but what’s interesting is the way [showrunners Doug Petrie and Marco Ramirez] have made his story a slow burn. It’s interesting to find this guy at the point we find him. You want an evolution and a process. He starts in one place and will end up in another.