Actor Jon Bernthal just made his big return to the MCU as Frank Castle/the Punisher in Daredevil: Born Again season one. And much like the Punisher has strong connections to Spider-Man in comics, Bernthal has strong connections to MCU Spider-Man actor Tom Holland, with whom he's currently filming The Odyssey with Christopher Nolan.
Bernthal tells IMDb that he and Holland helped each other rehearse for their auditions as Punisher and Spider-Man, respectively, before either one of them was ever cast in the MCU.
"He knew, he knew. I mean, he knew. He knew," Bernthal gushes about Holland when asked if he had any idea whether Holland would be cast as Spider-Man. "I'm working with him right now, and he's the best. He is the best. He had such drive for, you know, a young kid."
"He was like. 'I'm gonna get this.' I was like, 'I dunno, a lot of people probably want it buddy'," Bernthal laughs. "We actually were in a very tiny town in Ireland, filming this movie on the west coast of Ireland, and he read with me for Punisher, and I read with him for Spider-Man, and we both got cast. But yeah, he was wonderful."
The movie in question was 2017's Pilgrimage, a Medieval action film set during the time of the Norman invasions of Ireland.
Technically, Spider-Man and Punisher have yet to crossover in the MCU, either in a show or a movie, though Daredevil: Born Again season one included mentions of both Punisher and Spider-Man from Wilson Fisk, finally connecting them.
Bernthal will reprise his role as the Punisher in a Marvel Special Presentation streaming special co-written by the actor himself, while Holland will return as Peter Parker in the recently announced Spider-Man: Brand New Day. And of course, with Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars on the horizon, there's definitely still a chance they could cross paths in the MCU.
All episodes of Daredevil: Born Again season 1 are streaming now on Disney Plus. Next up for the MCU is Thunderbolts*, which arrives in UK cinemas on May 1 and US theaters on May 2. In the meantime, check out our guide to all the other upcoming superhero movies on the way in 2025 and beyond.
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