The Punisher fires another shot in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is expanding in a major way in 2026, a year when crossovers come in droves. There is Avengers: Doomsday, which brings heroes from different pockets of the MCU and even other universes, like Fox‘s original X-Men. Then there is Spider-Man: Brand New Day. The cast of Marvel‘s next Spider-Man movie will feature heroes like the Punisher and the Hulk, with Stranger Things‘ Sadie Sink reportedly giving life to the MCU’s version of the X-Men’s Jean Grey. Seeing the Punisher, a more mature character, and Spider-Man interact has become one of the film’s most exciting elements.
Now, Empire has shared a new look at Jon Bernthal‘s Punisher and Tom Holland‘s Spider-Man in an action scene in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Check out the image below:
The new official image of the upcoming MCU movie shows Spider-Man running next to the Punisher, who has his sights on an off-screen target. As happens in all the anti-hero’s appearances, Bernthal‘s Punisher is locked and loaded, firing an assault rifle at someone. Given how the Punisher has only appeared in TV-MA MCU TV shows so far, his role in the PG-13 Spider-Man: Brand New Day is intriguing.
Given the nature of Bernthal‘s Marvel character, who just returned to the small screen with the violent The Punisher: One Last Kill, the latest of Marvel’s Special Presentations on Disney+, the fact that Frank Castle will star in a non-R-rated movie is not something that is lost on the fans and the creators behind Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Speaking to Empire, Holland addressed how the MCU movie tackles the Punisher in a PG-13 environment. According to the Spider-Man actor, he understands the concerns about Punisher’s role, but claims that it “feels very authentic to the Frank Castle we know.”
Holland also adds that “there are fun ways to get around the fact that he swears all the time and kills people.” Based on that, Bernthal’s Punisher might be going around on another murder spree in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which causes conflict with Peter Parker, only it will not be as bloody an endeavor as Disney+‘s The Punisher: One Last Kill. Bernthal also spoke to Empire about how the Punisher fits into this different kind of Marvel release. According to the Frank Castle star, the Punisher is “not looking for a buddy” in the Spider-Man movie.
Bernthal believes that Frank “is perfectly at peace in a world of absolute darkness.” That said, his hard exterior does not tell the whole tale. The Punisher, even if he does not want to show it, “does care about Peter,” according to Bernthal. Spider-Man will be in a dark place in his next MCU movie, as the world forgot who Peter Parker was after Doctor Strange’s spell in Spider-Man: No Way Home. As the movie’s trailer showed, Zendaya‘s MJ has a new boyfriend, and with Aunt May dead, Peter is all alone.
Teaming up with the Punisher, a hero who works best in the darkness and has so much trauma within him, is perfect for this next era of Spider-Man stories in the MCU. The Spider-Man: Brand New Day trailer already teased that Peter is not a fan of the Punisher’s habit of swearing and killing people. Based on what Holland and Bernthal have now revealed, it seems like their dynamic will be quite entertaining in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.