So we've had three movies starring Marvel's Punisher. One in 1989 starring Dolph Lundgren. One in 2004 starring Thomas Jane. And one in 2008 starring Ray Stevenson. And all of three of them have bombed!... terribly!
You know, after all three attempts have failed, I believe that a movie isn't the best way to handle this particular hero. And now, with the established MCU, it's likely Marvel won't attempt another Punisher film. Why? Because, as you've noticed, the MCU has an awfully light hearted feel to it (Both Avengers and Iron Man 3 are borderline comedies). The Punisher would feel out of place.
So, my idea is what if the Punisher was a TV show? Think about it, all three movies failed. So maybe a movie isn't the best way to go about it. My idea is that a TV show would be a little better for this particular hero. And that IT WOULD NOT BE TIED INTO OR RELATED TO THE MCU!!!!! Read above. I've already hit that note above.
Rating:
For the Punisher to be a TV show, it would ONLY be rated TV-MA for its excessive violence, bloodshed, and swearing. Maybe sexual situations, but I don't know.
Networks: Given its rating, there's only a handful of networks that would air a TV-MA show. There are four that I think would handle it best.
1.
Reason(s): Oz, True Blood, Deadwood, Boardwalk Empire
HBO is know for its critically acclaimed dramas. Many of which are dark, gritty, and violent.
Oz and
True Blood are specific shows that I feel have a feel similar to Punisher. Specifically the grittiness and bloodshed. (Especially
True Blood which features violent decapitations and bodily explosions)
2.
Reasons: Dexter, Ray Donovan, Homeland
Showtime is another prime example of dark gritty violent shows. Actually,
Dexter specifically convinced me that Showtime could handle a Punisher show. Especially because I've noticed that while Showtime gets the crappier movies compared to HBO and Starz, it gets the better shows.
3.
Reasons: Sons of Anarchy, American Horror Story, The Shield
Personally, FX is my favorite choice of network to handle a Punisher TV show. Why? Because it airs TV-MA programming, and you also don't have to pay extra cash to buy the channels (unlike HBO and Showtime). So a Punisher series would get a bigger audience because people (mostly) already have the channel in comparison to the people who buy HBO and Showtime.
4.
Reasons: The Walking Dead
Honestly, I don't watch AMC shows. Nothing I've seen appeals to me. However, there is much acclaim for
The Walking Dead. One, because it's good. Again I don't watch it, so I can't vouch. Two, because it's a faithful adaptation of its source material.
Crew: Who I think could best handle bringing the Punisher to life on the small screen.
As I said before, AMC's
The Walking Dead has gained much acclaim. Partly because it's so faithful to its source material. That is why I believe Darabont is best for creating a Punisher series.
I'm not gonna lie,
American Horror Story is one of my favorite shows. The cast is superb, the writing is amazing, and the story structure is good as well. All of that, can be contributed to Falchuk and Murphy. And also (and I just learned this) FX's
Nip/Tuck. I was also kind of nervous about this because Falchuk and Murphy also created
Glee, so I was partially afraid of your guys' reaction to that. But, if they created
American Horror Story, then I think they'd be perfect for a Punisher show.
Cast: And now the part you've all been waiting for. The cast.
For the role of Frank Castle, I had two actors in mind. Tell me who you like more in reviews. For both choices, I went with actors in their early 40s. I feel that the Punisher is a little bit older (not too much older, just early to mid forties) given his military career.
Eric Dane is best known for his role as Dr. Mark Sloan on the ABC medical drama
Grey's Anatomy. He also had a small role (I wanna say cameo, but I think I'd be using it wrong) as Multiple Man in
X-Men: The Last Stand. He's a good actor who gives off that sort of dark brooding tough guy vibe. I think he could handle it.
People on this site would probably best know Burton for his voice acting work. He is the voice of Cloud Strife in the English cast of various
Final Fantasy VII and
Kingdom Hearts products. However, Burton is also known for mob enforcer Jason Morgan on the soap opera
General Hospital. Which he was pretty good in. Plus, he just looks a lot like Castle.
I first saw Fogler in the movie
Balls of Fury, which just sucked! After that, I didn't see him in anything for a while. Then, he showed up again. He had a recurring guest role on the series
Hannibal. And wow, he was really good. He flexed his dramatic muscle again alongside Josh Duhamel in
Scenic Route. I think he'd be great for this role.
Braugher is an amazing actor. Watch his performance on the short lived
Last Resort. I think he'd be great for this part.
Another good, but underrated actor. Gubler's performance on
Criminal Minds is simply amazing. With a few tweaks to his CM performance, I think he could blow the audience away as this former criminal turned ally and friend of the Punisher.
I recently saw O'Mara in the drama,
The Good Wife. He played a mob lawyer. He was just...wow! The way he pulled it off so flawlessly, I saw the potential for him to be the Punisher's mole.
This was really easy casting for me. Watch
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Despite being a very dedicated cop, Soap serves as comic relief for the dark gritty Punisher Universe. I could only see Culkin in this role.
This is a character who, if this actually happened, we would not see for a couple of seasons. He doesn't need to start off with a sidekick. Ideally, she wouldn't appear (and this is going off ideas in my head) until season 6 or 7. Lily Rabe is a simply amazing actress. I almost didn't give the part to her, but I saw she had been cast in the upcoming finale to the Hunger Games trilogy,
Mockingjay. In the role she had been cast, I figured Rabe could do action.
Villains: And finally we have the villains for the show. I decided to keep the show set in a realistic universe. Occasionally, the Punisher will deal with a fantastic threat- like a mutant or a supernatural foe. I decided to keep this Punisher show as realistic as possible so I didn't used the more fantastic villains.
In hindsight, I really regret this choice. I've never seen Jones act. But, given that he's a wrestler, he's probably not very good. But it's so hard to cast big character like the Russian. I kinda want the Russian to be a (mostly) non speaking part so he can just look menacing, but I don't know.
If he were still alive, Michael Clarke Duncan would have OWNED this part. However, Grevioux is another good actor. He also has a really distinct voice that would make Barracuda much more menacing.
For the Punisher's arch foe, Jigsaw, I came up with two choices.
I feel the O'Hare is a very underrated actor. You see him everywhere, but you don't usually give him much thought. But I've seen him play really dark, evil, creepy roles. Particularly the psychotic Russel in
True Blood.
This one, you might not have seen coming. But watch
American Horror Story: Asylum. Quinto plays this creepy psychotic doctor who is also a serial killer. And he is really good. I honestly never thought of him as a villain until I saw AHS.
Eli Roth (
Inglourious Basterds) was also considered.
This choice might take some convincing. A lot of people out there cast the heavyset guy as the Kingpin. Upon researching this role, here is what I came up with: THE KINGPIN IS NOT FAT! It is muscle that he disguises to look like fat. Perlman is a big guy and he has the menacing presence of the Kingpin.
Recently, McDermott has become one of my favorite actors. Watch the drama
Hostages and you'll see why. He's also well built, which is good considering Buschwacker was a soldier.
Alongside Jigsaw, I'd imagine Gnucci being one of the show's main antagonists. As I said earlier, I love AHS. And Lange is the reason why. She is amazing, creepy, and breathtaking all rolled up into one. Given her imposing presence in AHS, she would be perfect as the mob boss and matriarch.
I didn't know about short before the ABC drama
Scandal. After I saw his performance, I decided to look him up. He has a very versatile career. Did you know he's a choreographer? That might help with his stunts.
Holloway is another favorite of mine. His role as Sawyer in
Lost showed he was a badass. I think he'd own the Hitman, which is also a great character for Castle's development.
So what do you think? As always, thank you for your time and I appreciate your thumbs up and reviews.