Jon Bernthal

Hollywood is so obsessed with superheroes these days they made a superhero movie about an accountant. It’s called The Accountant, and it is indeed about a guy who prepares people’s taxes, looks for deductions, and monitors financial records for fraud. But in his off-hours, this guy is also a master martial artist and a sniper capable of hitting targets a mile away. He also has a secret identity and what amounts to a low-rent Batcave, an Airstream trailer full of weapons and cash, stashed in a storage unit. He’s played by former Daredevil and current Batman Ben Affleck. He doesn’t wear a cape, but he might as well.

Among the hierarchy of Marvel Netflix news from New York Comic-Con, The Punisher confirming details that set photographers have known for days ranks lower, but nonetheless appreciated. Not only is production confirmed begun, but Daredevil star Deborah Ann Woll has a larger role than we thought.

Jon Bernthal got tongues wagging with reports that Netflix’s Punisher spinoff had already started filming, and now Marvel is finally backing it up. Not only do we know for sure that 2017 will see the Punisher’s return, but also three major additions to the Netflix cast.

We’re still not entirely clear on how The Punisher managed to start filming without any real casting announcements, or where Marvel’s gun-toting antihero might fit in The Defenders, but a bit of crossover is to be expected. Just as Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle emerged from Daredevil, the spinoff series returns the favor in a new set photo appearance.

The timeline of Marvel’s post-Luke Cage Netflix series remains somewhat unclear, a prospect made more confusing by recent reports that Jon Bernthal would soon start filming his Punisher spinoff. Now, new set photos claim filming is already underway, which could put a premiere sometime in the next year.

Considering how wide the gulf between Marvel’s TV and movie branches has become, it’s surprising that neither Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. nor Netflix’s Defenders have attempted TV solidarity with an earnest crossover. It’s not as easy as it sounds, but there’s mounting evidence that could point toward Jon Bernthal punishing ABC’s Agents sometime in the near future.

Marvel TV brought a heavy bag of goodies to Comic-Con 2016, including first looks at Netflix’s Iron Fist and FX X-Men series Legion, but will New York do one better? We’ll find out, as both series are due for panel treatment at New York Comic-Con 2016, along with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 4, and some new goodies from Marvel Animation.

Even as Marvel’s Netflix Punisher spinoff may take a backseat to Iron Fist and The Defenders until 2018, fans knew as early as Daredevil Season 2 what Marvel character Frank Castle might seek out next. So it may be, as reports suggest Netflix’s Punisher has begun preliminary casting for a role of Micro-importance.

As with Daredevil himself, Jon Bertnthal’s Frank Castle didn’t properly adopt the mantle of The Punisher until late in Season 2, but might the character change his ways in time for the confirmed spinoff? Bernthal himself says the Frank Castle we followed through Daredevil was very much not “The Punisher” as fans know him, though that could certainly change.

Early details on The Accountant made the new film from Warrior director Gavin O’Connor sound like it was based on a graphic novel, even though it’s not: Ben Affleck stars as a white collar accountant who leads a double-life as a lethal assassin. So it wasn’t really surprising when WB announced plans to release a tie-in comic book for The Accountant. What is a bit surprising is the tone of the first trailer, which presents an intriguing and off-kilter drama about a man struggling with a vague mental disorder.