Reading about the upcoming comic book relaunch of The Punisher got me thinking. The series by Greg Rucka and Marco Checchetto will be gritty, and it will be violent...it will not however be a MAX series and instead will feature a "Parental Guidance" warning on the cover. Now, this is nothing all that new. There have been plenty of Punisher series' in the past, all of which have been of a similar type to this one. None of them feature bad language or overly bloody and gory violence, but they're still loved by fans. So, would a movie just like that work? Does it have to be R-Rated? Could a PG-13 version work on the big screen?
Personally, I think the answer is maybe. With Marvel Studios and Disney now holding the rights to the character, we're bound to see Frank Castle turn up on either the big or small screen sometime in the near future. If it's the former, then I think it's fair to say Disney have little interest in producing an R-Rated Punisher movie. Which is why I'm asking, would it work as a PG-13? Tone down the language and gore, and it really could. A movie in the same vein as Matt Fraction's 'Punisher: Warzone' series might work, but however you look at it, there's no getting away from the violence which surrounds Frank Castle.
Well, those were my thoughts when I posted the poll a few days ago. Looks like there's only a few of us who feel that way though, as you voted by a huge majority that the only way for The Punisher to hit the big screen would be with an R-Rating! Here are the results in full, and be sure to share your thoughts on this in the usual place! (in hindsight, these results probably aren't all that shocking!) :)
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