I really enjoyed Thomas Jane’s take on the Punisher back in the 2004 flick. Sure, John Travolta as the main bad guy felt a bit hammy, and the murder of Frank Castle’s entire family was a little much, but outside that, the 2004 Punisher was a fun movie with a solid cast. But I know I’m in the minority. So it wasn’t much of a surprise when Lionsgate and Marvel decided to go in a different direction and recast Frank Castle with Ray Stevenson for 2008’s Punisher: War Zone.
But I wasn’t done with Thomas Jane’s version of the Punisher. And neither was Thomas Jane.
Flash forward to 2012 and Thomas Jane has wrangled up a few friends (including Ron Perlman) to create a fan fiction short film called “Dirty Laundry” with Jane reprising the role of Frank Castle. The 10-minute short is pretty damn dark (befitting the Punisher world) and is definitely NSFW. What it does manage to do, though, is show Jane’s dedication to delivering a version of the Punisher for the screen that feels more in line with his comic book counterpart. Like, I can totally believe Frank Castle could turn a Whiskey bottle into one of the deadliest weapons on earth.
Give the video below a watch and let us know what you think of Thomas Jane’s latest take on the Punisher. With enough fan support maybe we can see yet another reboot of the Punisher movie franchise with Thomas Jane back in the starring role...
Erik Norris is a freelance writer for sites such as ComicVine, IGN and CraveOnline.com. You can stalk him on Twitter@Regular_Erik.