Jon Bernthal has been playing the definitive version of Marvel’s ruthless vigilante Frank Castle since he appeared in the series’ second season. Daredevil on Netflix back in 2016. From the start, Bernthal has brought the perfect blend of unpredictable and righteous violence to the anti-hero known as the Punisher, but on July 31 he faces his biggest challenge yet: a Marvel film.
Bernthal’s Punisher appears alongside Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Brand New Day from Sony and Marvel Studios. It may seem like just another day on the job for an actor who’s been fighting crime in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for a decade, but the experience of making a movie with a capital F was still a shock.
“Oh, man, this is completely different,” Bernthal tells Polygon. “These guys Really have experience. It’s not that Marvel TV doesn’t have the expertise, it’s the space, the bandwidth, the budget. Anything is possible. I was shocked every day I walked onto those sets.”
Image: Jay Maidment/Marvel Entertainment/Columbia Pictures/Everett Collection
The experience of filming Spider-Man: New Day not only amazed him, but also showed him how wide the gap is between Marvel films and television productions.
“When you make Marvel TV, we’re trying to create movie-level action using a TV budget and time frame,” Bernthal says. “So come on, come on, come on. You don’t have time. You have to make it work. What I loved about it was that it was the same intensity, the same dedication to making it great, the same zeal to do it right, but with the capabilities to actually do it.”
The actor especially praises Spider-Man actor Tom Holland, director Destin Daniel Cretton and producer Amy Pascal for being willing to stop production to get things right.
“We stopped so many times and just slowed everything down to make the scenes work,” says Bernthal. “It’s a real testament to Tom and Destin and Amy and everyone here.”
Speaking of Tom Holland, Bernthal also took the opportunity to point out that of all the many characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the hero he’s always wanted to team up with is Holland’s web-slinger.
“Whenever journalists or fans ask me, ‘Which superhero are you…?’ I always say Spider-Man. Because I love Tom. I love what he built. I like who he is.”
Spider-Man: Brand New Day Premiere in cinemas on July 31st.
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