Despite the fact it was ‘confirmed’ (and I use that term loosely) that Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle aka The Punisher will not be returning to the second season of the Disney+ series Daredevil Born Again, a new set photo straight from a cast member might be telling us a different story.
While it’s common knowledge at this point that The Punisher will be a main player in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it looks like the character might also be returning to the Daredevil Born Again’s second season after all. If a new set photo from Daredevil actor Royce Johnson, better known as Detective Brett Mahoney, gives us any insight then Jon Bernthal was definitely on the set of the show at some point during filming in what looks like the full Punisher facial hair look (minus the actual costume). The actor shared a photo slideshow on his Instagram and the final picture goes directly again the previous claims that the character will not be showing up in the series. Check out the image in question below:
The image shows actor Royce Johnson and Deborah Ann Woll (Karen Page) together with Jon Bernthal presumably during the filming of the show. Other photos in the slideshow include actor Charlie Cox (Matt Murdock aka Daredevil) and other on-set moments during filming, so I think it’s safe to assume that Frank Castle was somewhere relevant during the events of the second season and could be showing up at some point. It would be one thing if the image was just Johnson and Bernthal because it could realistically have been taken anywhere, but the fact that Karen Page also shows up points directly to an inclusion in the second season of the series.
Season one of Daredevil Born Again ended with Kingpin (played by Vincent D-Onofrio) expanding his power with his anti-vigilante task force as his mayoral reach continues to grow. The plot point will be a main conflict of the second season, and with Kingpin going after vigilantes it would make sense that The Punisher would be somewhere on that radar. And with Castle supposedly joining forces with none other then Peter Parker in Brand New Day, it looks as if he will assume the role of hero (or anti-hero?) putting him in a prime spot to help Daredevil take down Wilson Fisk.
Not a whole lot more about season two of Daredevil Born Again is known aside from the fact the show will also be bringing back Netflix’s Jessica Jones (played by Krysten Ritter) in what could be the beginning of a Defenders revival if Mike Colter (Luke Cage) and Finn Jones (Iron Fist) eventually follow. For now, it looks like they are slow dripping the Netflix series’ actors into the current Marvel Cinematic Universe, which honestly makes a ton of sense for the longevity of the franchises. The Punisher will also reportedly have a special feature presentation on Disney+ in 2026, so while there is a chance that the presentation was filmed on set at the same time as Daredevil while intending to be its own thing, the inclusion of Karen Page points to the character being in the second season at some point. For now, we can only speculate.
With the history that both Matt Murdock and Frank Castle have together during the original Netflix series, it makes sense that Castle will once again be showing up in the show as his first appearance in the MCU was in the second season of the original Daredevil series on Netflix. For now, it’s anyone’s guess though. Do you think that The Punisher will show up in Daredevil Born Again season 2? How do you think his character will play into the series if he is in fact returning? Make sure to let us know your speculations below in the comments!
Daredevil Born Again returns to Disney+ in March 2026! Who’s hypt?!
Source: Royce Johnson’s Instagram via Gamesradar+
