Jon Bernthal got personal for Marvel&x27;s &x27;The Punisher: One Last Kill&x27; Brian Truitt, USA TODAYWed, May 13, 2026 at 6:43 PM UTC 0 Warning: this story contains light spoilers from Marvel’s Disney+ special “The Punisher: One Last Kill”(streaming now). Jon Bernthal’s latest round as the Punisher couldn’t have been more personal. For a decade now, Bernthal has deeply explored the antiheroic character of Frank Castle, who started a oneman war on crime after the murder of his family in a gang shootout, from Netflix’s original “Daredevil” series to his own show.
Jon Bernthal got personal for Marvel's 'The Punisher: One Last Kill'
Brian Truitt, USA TODAYWed, May 13, 2026 at 6:43 PM UTC
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Warning: this story contains light spoilers from Marvel’s Disney+ special “The Punisher: One Last Kill”(streaming now).
Jon Bernthal’s latest round as the Punisher couldn’t have been more personal.
For a decade now, Bernthal has deeply explored the antiheroic character of Frank Castle, who started a one-man war on crime after the murder of his family in a gang shootout, from Netflix’s original “Daredevil” series to his own show. In “Punisher: Last Kill,” Frank wrestles with the psychological toll of his brutal actions and sees his murdered daughter Lisa again – played by Bernthal’s own 11-year-old child, Adeline.
Frank Castle (center) is haunted by ghosts of fellow soldiers (Jason R. Moore, Nick Koumalatsos and Colton Hill) in Disney+'s Marvel special "Punisher: One Last Kill."
The actor hadn’t seen his family for a while during pre-production and filming, until a tough scene set at Lisa’s gravesite, where dad and daughter reunited.
“I was in a pretty dark emotional place, I'll be honest,” Bernthal tells USA TODAY. “I pop my head up at the grave and she's standing right in front of me. We designed that to have as much emotional impact as it could. It was such a joy to share it with her.”
Co-written and directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green (“King Richard”), “One Last Kill” puts the Punisher through the wringer, emotionally and physically, like never before. Ignoring the extreme chaos around him in a crime-ridden neighborhood, the former Marine is haunted by ghosts of fellow soldiers. Frank contemplates ending it all, even as mob matriarch Ma Gnucci (Judith Light) also wants him dead after he killed her entire family.
A lot of Punisher stories move past “the spiraling, whirling madness and darkness of trying to avenge his family, and he had become this sort of crime fighter or proponent for justice,” Bernthal says. “I understand the need and desire to get him there, but I really wanted for the fans to see it happen in real time. So instead of moving him forward down the line, I wanted to bring him back and show what it was like really at rock bottom.”
Bernthal’s close with a group of veterans and found inspiration in Nick Koumalatsos. A “One Last Kill” producer who also appears in the special, he had a story that was similar to Frank’s as far as hitting a low point and “going to take his own life and what happened to get him out of it,” Bernthal says. “I was really intrigued with the idea of if the only way you know how to honor the dead, to honor the people that you miss so deeply, is to go and kill in their name, what happens when there's no one left to kill?”
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With Frank’s severe emotional isolation, Bernthal crafts him as "this unreliable narrator. He’s really cracking and he doesn't know what to believe anymore,” the actor says. “The result is a very fragile version of Frank where he can't even trust himself until he's caught on fire and all of a sudden he hears a scream from next door. That reminds him of his daughter's scream and, boom, he's in action.”
Green also was affected by hearing from ex-soldiers who experienced what Frank’s going through: “It’s heartbreaking when you see these big, strong men who get choked up or who hold on to the Punisher in that way. It’s beautiful.”
Frank ultimately has a crossroads moment in “One Last Kill”: Instead of going after Ma and continuing to be that version of the Punisher, he instead runs to help a young girl save her father from violent goons. “We knew in our heart which decision he was going to make. Having the audience decide is the most important thing,” Green says. “He makes the human choice, which is in part who Frank is and getting back to the core of his psychological state.”
Jon Bernthal and his daughter Adeline attend a New York City screening event for "The Punisher: One Last Kill."
Bernthal, who’s currently starring on Broadway in “Dog Day Afternoon” and features in “The Odyssey” (in theaters July 17), “would love to come back” and do more Punisher specials. But fans won’t have to wait to long to see his skull-bedecked armor again: Frank’s next Marvel Cinematic Universe appearance is opposite Tom Holland’s web-swinging hero in “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” (out July 31).
“Tonally, it's going to be much different, obviously, but it was important to me that the same character could walk off of one screen and walk onto the other, and hopefully we were able to achieve that,” Bernthal says.
For Bernthal, the Punisher is a character who’s a symbol to “put your wounds to use, put your pain to use,” he says. The ultimate goal with the Punisher is to get Frank to “a place where he can be the kind of person you want to show up when there's something bad going on,” the actor adds. “Some of these folks that are capable of the deepest of stakes and people who have suffered the biggest of wounds are also capable of doing the most good.”
This article discusses suicide and suicidal ideation. If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jon Bernthal's Punisher hits 'rock bottom' in 'One Last Kill'
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Published: May 13, 2026 at 10:00PM on Source: RED MAG
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