WATCH: Full trailer for The Punisher: One Last Kill and Bernthal talks Ennis and Dillon inspiration

Hey Frank.

The Punisher: One Last Kill will see Frank Castle, played by Jon Bernthal, going after the last living person responsible for the murder of his family; the official synopsis reads:

As Frank Castle searches for meaning beyond revenge, an unexpected force pulls him back into the fight.

Intestingly, it will release on May 12th, the same day as the season finale of Daredevil: Born Again season 2 so, while we know Bernthal’s Punisher won’t appear in Born Again season 2 as he was filming for Spider-man: Brand New Day, it certainly seems that One Last Kill will overlap with the finale, or why would they both come out on the same day?

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Bernthal co-wrote the special alongside Reinaldo Marcus Green, who also directed.

“Frank Castle is not your typical hero,” Bernthal says about Castle and the new Special, “He is a family man who lost everything. He’s obsessed with vengeance, no matter the cost. He’s relentless and indomitable. I won’t pretend these elements don’t appeal to something deep and primal in me. Getting to play a character who harnesses ferocity in service of a greater purpose, who channels devastating loss into unwavering action, has given me the chance to explore parts of myself honestly and openly. The journey has made me a better father, a better husband, a better man.”

He goes on: “Frank’s faith isn’t in institutions or systems. It’s in the memory of his family and the bond forged through shared struggle. That rawness, that refusal to look away from hard truths, that absolute commitment. We all recognize it because we’ve all felt it. Parents protecting their families see themselves in Frank. People who’ve suffered loss and needed to channel it into action see themselves in Frank. Anyone and everyone who’s taken a stand, large or small, to make things right sees themselves in Frank. We’ve all carried impossible weight. We’ve all had moments where we had to steel ourselves and push forward. There’s a little bit of Frank in all of us.”

Confirming that the story is inspired by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s 2000 storyline, Welcome Back, Frank, he goes on: “What Garth Ennis does with Frank is something I’ve tried to understand as an actor and now as a writer myself. Ennis doesn’t apologize for Frank. He subverts the hero genre by being comfortable with the ugly and gray side of heroism, finding truth in the sordid dust of desperation and anger.

“Welcome Back, Frank doesn’t ask you to love Frank — it asks you to look at him clearly, without flinching. It asks you to see Frank in all his gruesome glory and then find that same primal motivation within yourself so you can go on that journey with him. Ennis evokes that side of you that wants to go as far as Frank does for what you believe in. It’s an exploration and journey of honesty.

“Ennis and Steve Dillon gave us a character with clarity of purpose and absolute commitment, someone who channels loss into action with brutal honesty. That ferocity and vulnerability is what makes Frank endure. It’s what I hope to bring to every version of him, whether I’m embodying him on screen or writing him on the page.”

A Marvel Television Special Presentation: The Punisher: One Last Kill premieres May 12, only on Disney+

Watch the trailer:

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