Jon Bernthal’s Punisher Joining 'Spider-Man' Has Fans Loving 'Full Circle' Moment
The news of Jon Bernthal’s popular character, the Punisher, joining Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Brand New Day isn’t technically a reunion. However, considering Bernthal and Holland’s backstory related to their Marvel roles, one could argue it’s even bigger than a reunion.
After The Hollywood Reporter revealed Bernthal and Holland would be sharing the big screen in the 2026 film release, it helped resurface the story of how the duo prepared to audition for their respective roles.
In short, Bernthal and Holland helped each other run lines and prep for their auditions. The result, of course, was Bernthal being cast as the Punisher and Holland as Spider-Man, which the former detailed in an interview with IMDb.
"He's the best, he is the best. He had such drive, you know that young kid, he was like 'I am gonna get this,'" Bernthal explained.
"We actually were in a very tiny town in Ireland, making this movie in the west coast of Ireland. He read with me for Punisher and I read with him for Spider-Man and we both got cast."
Bernthal was referencing the 2017 movie Pilgrimage. He went on to play Punisher in 26 episodes of the television series that ran from 2017 to '19. He'll reprise the role in 2026 on a Disney+ special for which he'll also serve as a writer, and has most recently brought the character back in Marvel's Daredevil Netflix series.
Holland has starred in Spider-Man in both standalone films as well as the Avengers, dating back to 2016.
So, regarding Bernthal and Holland, Marvel has created the ultimate superhero full-circle moment in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and it's something fans couldn't get enough of.
"Full circle moment for the pair," applauded one fan.
"Successful full circle," said one fan.
"It's gonna be insane, first time I'm hyped for a Spider-Man movie," read one reply citing the Punisher/Spider-Man pairing.
"I hope this prompts Marvel to release that audition tape they did together as Spider-Man and Punisher that landed them the roles back in 2016. I've always wanted to see that," replied a fan.
It's a unique moment for Bernthal and Holland, who'll get to see the work they put in together roughly eight years ago pay off alongside one another on the big screen.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day will premiere on July 31, 2026.
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