Murphy's Multiverse

Category: News

  • The Future of Frank Castle After ‘One Last Kill’

    The Future of Frank Castle After ‘One Last Kill’

    As fans prepare to dive into The Punisher: One Last Kill on Disney+, a new report from The Direct is fueling speculation that this Special Presentation might be the final audition for a full-blown theatrical Punisher movie.

    While the current project is a standalone, 40ish-minute Marvel Spotlight entry, the conversation is rapidly shifting toward Frank Castle’s big-screen potential—especially with Jon Bernthal already confirmed for a major role in this summer’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

    The Punisher: One Last Kill isn’t just another MCU spin-off; it’s a mission statement. Bernthal didn’t just return as the lead; he also co-wrote and executive produced the special alongside director Reinaldo Marcus Green. This level of creative involvement suggests Marvel is trusting Bernthal to define the adult tone of the character’s MCU future.

    Moving forward. I think, speaking for myself, I know Jon, and I would love to make a movie, something that could go worldwide and be on screens everywhere. But obviously, that’ll be Marvel’s decision.

    -Reinaldo Marcus Green

    Green admitted that while One Last Kill is a streaming event, both he and Bernthal “would love” to see Frank Castle lead his own theatrical film. “Obviously, that’ll be Marvel’s decision,” Green noted, but emphasized that the demand for an R-rated theatrical Punisher has never been higher.

    To be honest, I can’t speak to that. I don’t know what the plans are for the future of the Punisher. The only thing that we hope that we were able to accomplish is the demand for more if we were able to accomplish that. Hopefully Jon [Bernthal] and Marvel will come together to make something worthy of what the audience would want to see out of that character.

    -Reinaldo Marcus Green

    Following the success of Deadpool & Wolverine and the two TV-MA  seasons of Daredevil: Born Again, Marvel Studios is reportedly no longer afraid of the R-rating in theaters. With Disney pivoting back toward theatrical releases and away from aggressive streaming slates, Frank Castle is the perfect candidate to lead a lower-budget, high-impact, R-rated Marvel Knights cinematic line.

    Source: The Direct

  • ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Star Confirms Rumors about the Film’s Curious Creative Process

    ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Star Confirms Rumors about the Film’s Curious Creative Process

    The production of Avengers: Doomsday is shaping up to be as chaotic and unpredictable as the multiverse itself. In an interview with Josh Horowitz, Fantastic Four star Ebon Moss-Bachrach dropped some fascinating details about the secretive writing process behind the Russo Brothers’ return and hinted at what to expect from Ben Grimm’s time on screen in the upcoming film.

    According to Moss-Bachrach, the sheer scope of the fifth installment in the Avengers franchise made the process of filming his portion feel disjointed, especially in comparison to the smaller scale Fantastic Four film.

    “Doomsday was different in that it’s a bigger movie with more moving parts, and I think it was more compartmentalized, whereas Fantastic Four: First Steps, we were there like every every day, every day, having a sense of the thing,” said Moss-Bachrach.

    “These movies are so interstellar and so galactic and conceptual. So, it’s very hard sometimes to understand what’s going on in the story. And Doomsday was a little bit harder for me to hold all the parts,” he continued. “And, I mean, I knew where I was, I knew which planets, which universe I was in. But how it was connecting to other universes, I would have to go back to, like, ‘Joe [Russo] can you just, I know you’ve talked me through, can you just tell me one more time?‘”

    When asked by Horowitz if he’d worked from a completed script, Moss-Bachrach ultimately revealed that at least his portion of the process wrapped without him being aware of the film’s ending.

    “Yeah, I did read a full script, but those scripts change quite a bit,” he said before changing course. “You know what? Probably not, it probably didn’t have a full, like, third act. I don’t think it had an ending. I don’t think anyone gets to see that stuff.”

    While one of the four teasers released for Doomsday teased Thing’s interactions with Earth-616’s Wakandans and Talokanil, Moss-Bachrach also seemingly revealed that the Thing will be sharing some scenes not only with Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom but also some powerful mutant heroes, marking the first time members of the Fantastic Four and X-Men have shared the screen.

    “What a wonderful man. Like, what a great set leader he was. He’s been doing this for a long time and he was so generous and really, like, checking in, making sure everyone was good. Really good coach energy there… I would look around the room and it’d be like, ‘There’s Ian McKellan, and there’s Channing Tatum,’ it’s a lot.”

    Source: Happy, Sad, Confused

  • Matthew Lillard’s ‘Man of Tomorrow’ Role Could Streeeeeetch Into a Terrific New DCU Team

    Matthew Lillard’s ‘Man of Tomorrow’ Role Could Streeeeeetch Into a Terrific New DCU Team

    The internet has a funny way of remembering things, and right now, it’s fixated on a 26-year-old conversation between two friends. Following the news that Matthew Lillard has officially joined the cast of Man of Tomorrow, a persistent and highly logical theory has taken over: Eel O’Brian is finally coming to the big screen.

    While Plastic Man sounds like a wild swing, the evidence suggests this isn’t just fan-casting—it’s a decades-long manifestation.

    The bedrock of this theory isn’t just Lillard’s lanky frame; it’s a direct confirmation from James Gunn himself. Back in March 2023, Gunn took to social media to confirm a long-standing rumor: while filming the first Scooby-Doo in 2000, he and Lillard spent their downtime discussing a Plastic Man movie.

    Gunn has gone on record stating that he always thought Lillard’s physical comedy and rubbery facial expressions made him the definitive choice for the role. In his recent “no reason” photo with Lillard on Instagram, fans noticed the actor’s current look—lean, expressive, and wearing a very Eel O’Brian style of glasses.

    Why introduce Plastic Man in a Superman sequel? Perhaps Gunn is continuing that development of another group of heroes to the new DC Universe.

    The Terrifics

    We already know that Man of Tomorrow features the returns of Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi) and Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan). In the comics, these two are the core of a team called The Terrifics—and the third member is almost always Plastic Man. Lillard’s chaotic energy would be the perfect foil to Gathegi’s stoic intellect and Carrigan’s tragic Metamorpho. Introducing him here allows Gunn to build toward a Terrifics spin-off without needing a full origin story movie.

    Some fans have argued the 56-year-olf Lillard might be too old, but Gunn has alreadly pivoted his DCU to feature seasoned heroes, like Lanterns Guy Gardner and Hal Jordan. A veteran Plastic Man who has been stretching for years fits the established timeline of this universe.

    If Lillard is Plastic Man, it’s a full-circle moment for two of the industry’s most resilient creators. Gunn wrote the scripts that helped make Lillard a 2000s icon, and now he’s bringing him into the Gods and Monsters era. Plastic Man is a character that requires a specific mix of tragedy and absurdity—traits Lillard has mastered from Scream to The Bear.

  • Marvel Studios Reportedly Loses Veteran Director Ahead of Expected Sequel Launch

    Marvel Studios Reportedly Loses Veteran Director Ahead of Expected Sequel Launch

    Marvel Studios’ plans for the First Family just hit a major speed bump. According to a report from Jeff “The In” Sneider, Matt Shakman is reportedly moving on from the MCU to helm a new, original Planet of the Apes film for 20th Century Studios.

    While Shakman’s work on The Fantastic Four: First Steps was designed to launch a new flagship franchise, his jump to a different Disney-owned mega-brand suggests that a direct sequel to the 1960s-set space adventure may be further off than fans hoped—and likely under new leadership.

    LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JULY 21: Eric Pearson attends The Fantastic Four: First Steps World Premiere at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California on July 21, 2025. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images for Disney)

    Shakman isn’t making the jump alone. He is bringing First Steps screenwriter Josh Friedman with him to develop what is being described as a “new original story” for the Apes franchise.

    With First Steps pulling in a respectable but not record-breaking $521.8 million at the global box office, Disney is reportedly pivoting Shakman to revitalize the Apes brand while the Fantastic Four characters are integrated into the larger Avengers narrative.

    (L-R): Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic and Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch in 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios’ THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios. © 2025 20th Century Studios / © and ™ 2025 MARVEL.

    The Fantastic Four cast (Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach) are already locked in for massive roles in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. This Avengers window gives Marvel breathing room to find a new director for a standalone sequel, which was reported by Variety to be in development for a potential 2028 release.

    Shakman was the architect of the FF’s aesthetic. His departure signals that Marvel is moving away from the director-led era of solo trilogies–like James Gunn‘s Guardians and Jon Watts Spidey–and back to a more utilitarian model where characters move between directors as they flow in and out of the Avengers event films. For fans, this means the  First Family will be plenty busy—but their next solo outing might look very different.

  • Lee Sung Jin Reveals What Media Fuels His ‘X-Men’ Vision

    Lee Sung Jin Reveals What Media Fuels His ‘X-Men’ Vision

    The Mutant Saga just secured a powerhouse creative roster that should have every Marvel fan breathing a sigh of relief. In a major interview with Men’s Health, Lee Sung Jin (the Emmy-winning creator of Beef) officially confirmed he is deep in the “writing trenches” for Marvel Studios’ X-Men reboot, have some insight into the studio’s vision for the project and what X-Men content has shaped his love for the mutant heroes and villains.

    Director Jake Schreier previously worked with both Lee and co-writer Joanna Calo on Thunderbolts* and Beef. This shorthand allows them to tackle the “ideology and interpersonal drama” of the X-Men with a level of grit and realism rarely seen in blockbusters.

    What I’m excited about with Jake’s vision for the X-Men—and [Marvel president Kevin Feige and co-president Lou D’Esposito] are fully aligned with his vision—is that he wants to get back to focusing on the characters first. These are amazing characters with very rich backstories full of so much emotion. There are so many intra-team dynamics and relationships. There’s soapy stuff. And sure, there are political themes baked into the DNA of X-Men too, and those are evergreen, but we want to get back to character-first storytelling.

    -Lee Sung Jin

    Jin’s comments signal a massive tonal shift for the franchise. Rather than focusing on multiversal cameos or cosmic threats, the Beef creator is aiming for the heart of what made the original Chris Claremont comics a cultural phenomenon.

    Lee emphasized that Schreier’s vision is to lean into the “soapy” interpersonal dynamics. “These are amazing characters with very rich backstories full of so much emotion,” Lee told Men’s Health.

    A lifelong fan, Lee revealed he grew up on the 90s animated series and “devoured” X-Men ’97. He’s bringing that deep-rooted love for the “found family” aspect of the team to the script.

    The writing process is reportedly a hands-on, daily collaboration between Lee, Calo, Schreier, Kevin Feige, and Lou D’Esposito. Lee described the sessions as “invigorating,” with the team “in the lab every day” to perfect the draft.

    While the immediate focus is on a single great movie, Schreier and Feige have confirmed they are already mapping out sequels and spin-offs. The goal seems to be  to move away from the villain-of-the-week model and toward a long-term ideological war narrative… something that the X-Men are well-suited to handle.

    Source: Men’s Health

  • Alan Cumming’s Nightcrawler Returns in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’…Along with Some Secret Characters

    Alan Cumming’s Nightcrawler Returns in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’…Along with Some Secret Characters

    Alan Cumming is back in Avengers: Doomsday as Nightcrawler and he’s been quite forthcoming about his past and present experiences as the mutant teleporter. While fans are ecstatic to see the blue teleporter return, Cumming’s comments have pulled back the curtain on the “trauma” of the early 2000s X-Men era and the massive, secretive scale of the new Avengers epic.

    In his latest chat with Deadline, Cumming revealed that the Doomsday script is a maze of misdirection. To prevent leaks, several returning characters were given “secret names” in the script. “It was so confusing,” Cumming admitted. “Sometimes there were secret names because they didn’t want to reveal a certain character was returning.“

    Cumming described the film’s ensemble as “superhero soup,” noting that there are so many characters he “just can’t keep up” with the roster.

    In a classic “oops” moment, Cumming recently spoiled that his stunt training involved a fight sequence where he’s “hitting Pedro Pascal against the head.” This confirms a direct confrontation between the OG Fox X-Men and the Fantastic Four.

    Despite the massive cast, Cumming revealed he filmed much of his part in “isolation” against green screens, acting in a “featureless void” to accommodate his schedule for The Traitors. However, Leaks and teaser art suggest Nightcrawler will finally sport his classic red-and-black circus-style suit from the comics, a major departure from the tactical leather of the 2003 film.

    Source: Deadline

  • Jon Bernthal on the Tonal Clash Between ‘One Last Kill’ and ‘Brand New Day’

    Jon Bernthal on the Tonal Clash Between ‘One Last Kill’ and ‘Brand New Day’

    The year is 20206…and Frank Castle is officially the connective tissue of the MCU’s street-level slate…but don’t expect him to play nice in both sandboxes. While talking with Kelly Clarkson, Jon Bernthal broke down the stark tonal differences between his standalone Special Presentation, The Punisher: One Last Kill, and his highly anticipated role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

    Bernthal called the Special Presentation, which debuts on March 12th, “the most psychologically complex, darkest version of the Punisher that you’re going to see. I believe it’s what the fans want.”

    “I wrote it alongside the help of Nick Koumalatsos, who’s a Marine Raider and an unbelievable guy who wrote a book his own pain and his own bout with hopelessness and his story back,” Bernthal revealed. “It was such an honor. He’s a producer on [it]. Cody Alford, a Marine Raider, and Colton Hill, Green Beret, were on set. They’re badass.”

    Bernthal continued, “They’re more than badass. They’re just beautiful human beings, and they’re great, and they really wanted to do something, you know, for the veterans community and especially for these guys, the tip of the spear guys who are really suffering with entering back into the world. And I think that’s very much at the core of a Frank story.”

    Even though Castle first appeared in the pages of a Spider-Man comic, the character that most fans are familiar with–and the one they’ll see in One Last Kill–doesn’t fit the far more family-friendly tone of Sony and Marvel’s Spidey franchise. And so having a large role in the new installment meant that Bernthal would have to bring a kinder, gentler tone to Castle.

    “With Spider-Man, I think what was most important, because, obviously, tonally it’s different and such an honour to be a part of it, especially with my dear friend Tom Holland,” Bernthal said. “It was important to us that one Punisher could walk off one set and walk onto the other. Tonally, they couldn’t be more different, but I hope we were able to achieve that. It’s very important.”

    With The Punisher and Daredevil: Born Again showrunner Dario Scardapane having confirmed that Marvel Television is going full Netflix, it seems likely fans will get more of the gritty, bloody, badass Punisher sooner rather than later.

    Source: The Kelly Clarkson Show

  • Marvel TV Boss Reveals ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Time Skip, Intriguing Location on MCU Timeline

    Marvel TV Boss Reveals ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Time Skip, Intriguing Location on MCU Timeline

    The Season 2 finale of Daredevil: Born Again truly served as a definitive resolution to the conversation held between Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk over coffee in a diner in the series opening episode, “Heaven’s Half Hour.” Though both men believed they were destined to become the savior of New York City, they both realized they had nearly destroyed it and they both accepted the consequences of their actions.

    The series key players all have agency to make choices without the constraints of external forces, though it’s the choices made by Murdock and Fisk that will reverberate the loudest.

    -Murphy’s Multiverse Review of Daredevil: Born Again Season 2

    Both Fisk and Murdock willingly accepted their punishments, with Fisk exiled to (apparently) Puerto Rico and Murdock–now revealed as Daredevil–imprisoned in Cell Block D. Though the next season will clearly take the co-leads in a different direction, there’s no doubt they’ll meet again. However, according to Brad Winderbaum, Head of Streaming, Television, and Animation at Marvel Studios, the characters will have had some time to sit with their decisions when they reappear in Season 3.

    “There will be a small time jump, but it’s not too significant. It’s not like we’re jumping ahead five years or anything,” said Marvel’s streaming skipper. “We’re probably jumping ahead a year or so, kind of like the real-life distance between seasons. And yeah, Fisk’s exile is its own story. So it’s fun watching these two characters be in their own places in season three.“

    Should that all hold, Daredevil: Born Again Season 3 will be set sometime in mid-to-late 2028. That should provide the opportunity for the new season to wrap up before the post-credit scene to Thunderbolts* which, of course, takes place during Avengers: Doomsday. Intriguingly, the placement on the time line should allow for an expected fourth season to take place in a post-Secret Wars universe and whatever world of possibilities come with that.

    Source: Screen Rant

  • Greg Mottola Tops Short List for DC Studios’ Secret (Six) Deathstroke and Bane Film

    The “Gods and Monsters” slate just got a lot more lethal. In a blockbuster exclusive, Deadline reports that Greg Mottola (Superbad, Adventureland) is among the favorites to direct the Deathstroke & Bane team-up film for DC Studios.

    While Mottola is best known for his sharp, character-driven comedies and indie dramas, James Gunn and Peter Safran are deeply familiar with his work thanks to his time on Peacemaker.

    Though a script is still being written, it’s believed that the film will be a standalone villain-centric entry, similar in tone to the Suicide Squad. Indeed it’s been speculated that the project may be a Secret Six film with Deathstroke and Bane at its center.

    The screenplay is being penned by Matthew Orton (Moon Knight, Captain America: Brave New World), suggesting the tactical, military elements will be grounded and gritty.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Showrunner Confirms the Complete Netflixification of Marvel Television

    ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Showrunner Confirms the Complete Netflixification of Marvel Television

    Toward the end of Season 1 of Daredevil: Born Again, it seemed clear that Marvel Television was looking to revive more than just Netflix iteration of the Man Without Fear. Further assumptions about the direction of the studio’s streaming slate could be made with the returns of Jessica Jones and Luke Cage in Season 2 and Danny Rand now on board for Season 3. And now, there’s no need to assume anything at all.

    In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Daredevil: Born Again showrunner Dario Scardapane has confirmed plans for a renaissance of the entire Netflix Defenders-verse.

    “Along the way, particularly in [Daredevil: Born Again] season 2, we’re touching on the larger New York — the New York that is not quite near Avengers Tower but in the same city. And there are characters, storylines; we have the Punisher special coming out, which is part of that same world,” Scardapane explained. “So as it’s progressed, it just feels like you’re opening doors or going down streets to a neighborhood that existed 10 years ago.“

    “The establishment of the street-level characters in Netflix’s Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Defenders, Punisher, that’s the world that this is all heading towards, in my opinion. That’s just the way I’m looking at it creatively,” revealed Scardapane.

    It’s certainly not surprising, as even Matt Murdock could see the direction in which things we’re headed and it will likely continue to please the same bloodthirsty fans who hold the Defenders-verse in such high regards. Let’s just hope there’s some better characterization for some of the characters this time around.

    Source: EW