Despite having to leave the Netflix adaptation of "Marvel's Daredevil" before its sophomore season because of a film commitment, series executive producer Steven S. DeKnight still has a lot of things to say about what fans should look forward to when the series returns in 2016.
DeKnight joined the Netflix's Showrunners panel onTuesday's Television Critics Association summer press tour, and he shared several details about "Daredevil" season 2. According to the series' former executive producer, the show's version of The Punisher, portrayed by actor Jon Bernthal, will be the closest representation of the character based on how the original comics describes him compared to the other live-action versions that were played by Dolph Lundgren, Thomas Jane, and Ray Stevenson.
"The thing about The Punisher, and I think there are great things about each of those versions, but none of them was completely the Marvel version," DeKnight said.
He explained that the previous films where The Punisher appeared were not done under Marvel Studios' supervision, which is why the company had no direct control on how their original character was portrayed.
He also said that Bernthal's version of the character will not be as graphically violent as Stevenson's version in "The Punisher: War Zone" released in 2008, since they want to keep "Daredevil" in its PG-16 classification. He said that he is now out of the loop in case the new producers want to change their approach in season 2, but he would definitely be surprised if they decide to increase its violence next season.
DeKnight also expressed his disappointment when he had to leave "Daredevil" in its second season production.
"Punisher is one of my favorite characters. I've talked to Jeph Loeb ever since I first met him back on Buffy about doing The Punisher. So it was a heartbreak to me to have to leave, but I knew it was in good hands and I loved everything we had started talking about about Frank Castle being in that story," DeKnight said.
Netflix will probably launch "Marvel's Daredevil" season 2 sometime in April 2016.
