MARVEL MARATHON DEEP DIVE
THE PUNISHER
ONE LAST KILL
The Punisher: One Last Kill arrived on Disney+ on 12 May 2026 as a Marvel Television Special Presentation. Reinaldo Marcus Green directs Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle, who is pulled back into a fight when the crime boss Ma Gnucci puts a bounty on him.
A STORY BERNTHAL PITCHED
HOW THE SPECIAL WAS MADE
Jon Bernthal conceived a story for a Punisher special while filming the first season of Daredevil: Born Again, and Marvel Studios looked at some of his earlier writing before asking him to pitch it. Brad Winderbaum revealed the project in February 2025 under the Special Presentation banner, with Reinaldo Marcus Green set to direct and writing the screenplay with Bernthal. The title was revealed in March 2026.
It is the third Special Presentation in the MCU and the second MCU production centred on the character, after Netflix’s The Punisher. Filming took place in New York City from mid-July to early August 2025, with Robert Elswit as cinematographer and Kris Bowers composing the score, and the special received a TV-MA rating.
“a shotgun blast of a story, but [it] also has all the pathos and emotion that you want out of a Frank Castle story.”
Brad Winderbaum
A SMALL CAST AND A CRIME FAMILY
WHO IS IN THE CAST
Jon Bernthal plays Frank Castle, with Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page, Jason R. Moore as Curtis Hoyle and Judith Light as Ma Gnucci, plus Kelli Barrett as Maria Castle and Andre Royo as Dre. Frank is haunted by his past as he tries to move on from life as the Punisher.
BETWEEN BORN AGAIN AND SPIDER-MAN
WHERE THE SPECIAL FITS
The special runs concurrently with the second season of Daredevil: Born Again, in which Castle does not appear because of Bernthal’s commitments to this special and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. It explores Castle’s “psychological state” going into that film, and Bernthal filmed his scenes for both back to back.
THE REWATCH
A 73% CRITICS SCORE AND A DIVIDED METACRITIC
Rotten Tomatoes lists a 73% critics’ score from 75 reviews and a 78% audience score, and its consensus calls it “a pared-down, no-holds-barred actioner.” Metacritic gives it 63 from 15 critics and a user score of 6.5. Jordan Moreau of Variety called it “a powerful character study of a PTSD-addled veteran who has lost nearly everything,” while Gavia Baker-Whitelaw of TV Guide called it “virtually plotless.”
In the Marvel Marathon it sits in the MCU release order guide between Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. In the MCU timeline guide it comes between Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 and The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
QUICK ANSWERS
THE PUNISHER: ONE LAST KILL WATCH QUESTIONS
Do I need to watch other Marvel projects first?
It helps. Bernthal plays Frank Castle in Marvel’s Netflix series and in Daredevil: Born Again, and the special runs concurrently with Born Again Season 2.
How long is One Last Kill?
51 minutes, though early reports described it as about 45.
Does Frank Castle appear in Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
Yes. Bernthal plays Frank Castle in the film and shot those scenes back to back with the special.
Which Marvel Marathon guides include The Punisher: One Last Kill?
It appears in the MCU release order and MCU timeline guides.
EDITORIAL NOTES
SOURCES AND UPDATES
Development, production, release and reception details are checked against a special reference, aggregator scores and runtime data, cited individually below.