25 Things You Need to Know about The Punisher on Netflix

9. Ray Stevenson Was Third Punisher in ‘Punisher: War Zone’

The third and final (so far) version of The Punisher on the big screen came with Punisher: War Zone in 2008. The movie was the first ultra-violent movie featuring the Punisher but still left many critics disappointed.

Ray Stevenson (HBO’s Rome) starred here as Frank Castle, and while some fans thought he was too old for the role, it fits in well with the Garth Ennis idea that Frank Castle was a Vietnam veteran with years under his belt killing bad guys under the name, The Punisher.

This movie brought Jigsaw into the Punisher’s movie world and included the horrific scene where Billy found himself disfigured, this time by falling into a glass-crushing machine. With the R-rated violence, it is also interesting to note that this is one of the first superhero movies directed by a female – Lexi Alexander.

Unlike the first two Punisher movies, this one started with Frank Castle in action for years, and an NYPD Punisher Task Force team set up to catch him – although as with the comics, there are officers who have no desire to see Castle brought to justice. This film was very polarizing – receiving bad reviews upon its release but then seeing other critics start to defend the release.