‘Punisher: One Last Kill’ Shatters Marvel’s All-Time Rotten Tomatoes Record
Disney+ has officially released The Punisher: One Last Kill, bringing Jon Bernthal back as Frank Castle in his first solo MCU project.
The special presentation arrived on May 12 as part of Marvel’s Phase 6 lineup, and the first reviews are already getting attention online. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the project debuted with an 82% critic score, making it the highest-rated live-action Punisher adaptation so far.
The score currently places One Last Kill above both seasons of Netflix’s The Punisher series and the earlier Punisher movies from the 2000s. The Netflix show’s first season sits at 68%, while season 2 holds 61%. The 2004 Punisher movie has 30%, and Punisher: War Zone from 2008 stands at 29%. The audience score for the new special has not been revealed yet because viewers are still adding ratings.
The MCU has only released a few Special Presentations so far. The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special currently holds a 95% score, while Werewolf By Night has 90%. That means One Last Kill is now Marvel’s third-highest-rated special presentation at the moment.
Jon Bernthal also spoke to ScreenRant about the direction they wanted to take with Frank Castle this time. He explained that he and director Reinaldo Marcus Green wanted the story to focus on Frank at his lowest point emotionally. Bernthal said, “I felt like we really needed to see what rock bottom looked like with Frank, and I think you’re going to see it in this.”
The story follows Frank months after escaping from the Anti-Vigilante Task Force. He is living alone, struggling with grief, and haunted by visions of people from his past, including his family and close friends. The special shows Frank questioning his purpose before being pulled back into violence when crime boss Ma Gnucci targets him with a citywide bounty.
As the attacks grow worse, Frank is forced to make a choice between revenge and protecting innocent people. The story eventually pushes him back into becoming the Punisher once again.
The cast includes Deborah Ann Woll returning as Karen Page and Jason R. Moore returning as Curtis Hoyle. Judith Light joins the MCU as Ma Gnucci, the head of the Gnucci crime family. Several actors from Netflix’s Punisher series also return for emotional flashbacks and hallucination scenes tied to Frank’s past.
The special was directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, who also co-wrote the script with Bernthal. Marvel Studios reportedly developed the project during production on Daredevil: Born Again after Bernthal officially returned to the MCU in 2023.
Fans will not have to wait long to see Frank Castle again. Bernthal is already confirmed to appear in Spider-Man: Brand New Day alongside Tom Holland when the movie releases on July 31. Marvel has not announced any future Punisher projects yet, but the early response to One Last Kill is already creating strong interest in seeing Bernthal return again soon.
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