More photos from Marvel Studios' The Punisher Special Presentation have found their way online, this time revealing the face of a character widely thought to be Ma Gnucci.
Despite the quality of these photos being pretty good, no one has been able to identify who is playing the villain. It looks a little like Big Love and American Psycho star Chloë Sevigny, but it's also possible this actor is a stand-in. Whatever the case may be, we see now that the MCU's Ma Gnucci has all her limbs, despite being in a wheelchair.
As a reminder, the comic book version of Isabella Carmela Magdalena "Ma" Gnucci sets out to kill Frank after he murdered three of her sons. Using her connections in the NYPD to send the "Punisher Task Force" after the vigilante, she also dispatches the formidable Russian (played by WWE Hall of Famer Kevin Nash in 2004's The Punisher) to take him out.
Gnucci loses all of her limbs and scalp when The Punisher throws her into a polar bear enclosure in the Central Park Zoo. He later burns her to death by punting the limbless mobster into a burning building.
This all plays out in "Welcome Back, Frank" (written by Garth Ennis with art by Steve Dillon), a story that's considered a classic among fans.
Marvel Studios setting out to adapt elements of it for the MCU is an exciting prospect, though this Special Presentation feels more like a follow-up to Daredevil: Born Again than a lead-in to Spider-Man: Brand New Day. For starters, it would make sense for Gnucci's sons to be among the dirty cops from the Anti-Vigilante Task Force killed by Frank when we last saw him.
"I care very deeply about Frank, I’m really grateful that I’m getting the opportunity to tell the story that I think the fans deserve," Bernthal recently said of this special. "We’re giving it our all and we’re trying to tell a Frank Castle story that we’re going to turn our back on the audience - it’s not going to be easy, it’s not going to be light, and I think it’s the version that this character deserves and I’m just beyond honored and grateful that we get the opportunity."
Asked how the standalone special will compare to the Netflix series, Bernthal teased, "It’s going to be dark; Frank has no interest in breaking out the darkness. It’s not going to be easy. I don’t know if that’s the Netflix tone then that’s what it’s going to be. It will not be Punisher-lite, I promise you that."
Reinaldo Marcus Green and Bernthal wrote the special, with the former set to direct. The Punisher Special Presentation is set to premiere on Disney+ in 2026.