Jon Bernthal's return as Frank Castle in an upcoming Disney+ special will set a new runtime record for Marvel Studios. According to a Writer's Guild of America listing, the untitled Punisher special will run for 60 minutes, surpassing the previous longest special, Werewolf By Night (53 minutes), and the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (42 minutes).
Written by Bernthal and director Reinaldo Marcus Green, the special continues Castle's story from the Netflix series Daredevil and The Punisher. Supporting cast includes Jason R. Moore, Roe Rancell, and Mila Jaymes. The project originated from an idea Bernthal had while filming Daredevil: Born Again.
Bernthal assured fans the special will maintain the character's dark tone, telling The Hollywood Reporter: “It’s going to be dark… It will not be Punisher-lite, I promise you that.” Filmed over 12 days in New York City last summer, the special is expected to release on Disney+ later this year, around the same time as Spider-Man: Brand New Day, in which Bernthal also appears as the Punisher.
In a December interview with ScreenRant, Bernthal described the special as “as high-octane Punisher as you've ever seen,” emphasising consistency between his portrayal in the film and the special.
