Daredevil: Born Again was more than an amazing and gritty adventure; it also marked the first time beloved Marvel characters appeared on a live-action series after many years. For starters, Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk finally had the spotlight to themselves after being teased in other Marvel Cinematic Universe projects. Furthermore, fan favorites like Karen Page and Foggy Nelson made a comeback (even if it was just for a few minutes) after a long hiatus. But perhaps more exciting enough was the return of Frank, one-man-army, Castle.
The Punisher is one of Marvel's most beloved anti-heroes, which is why audiences jumped from their seats in excitement the second he appeared in Daredevil: Born Again. It was an amazing moment, especially when considering that his fate remained uncertain after the cancellation of his own stand-alone Netflix show. Audiences even thought they'd never see Jon Bernthal's iteration of the character again, so why did it get to such a grim point in the first place? Why did such a beloved series come to an end earlier than expected?
The end of the Netflix and Disney collaboration
It's worth mentioning that The Punisher show wasn't the only Netflix show to get axed. Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage were cancelled as well for the same reason: The end of the Netflix and Disney collaboration.
Back in 2012, the two industry giants made a deal that would last for six years, which would allow for the creation of shows centered around popular Marvel characters. During that time, fans saw the release of multiple critically-acclaimed shows and even a big crossover mini-series in the form of The Defenders. Season 2 of The Punisher and Season 3 of Jessica Jones were filmed a few months before 2019, which was the year of the partnership's expiration. Incidentally, those were the last Marvel seasons ever to be produced and released by Netflix.
The Netflix and Disney deal wasn't renewed once it came to an end, and many were quick to assume it was a decision taken by the latter. Back then, the House of Mouse was gearing up for the release of their own streaming platform, and the general belief was that they wanted to get back the rights to characters such as Punisher, Jessica Jones, and Daredevil in order to have a stronger library. However, it has since been confirmed that it was far from being the case.
Daredevil star Amy Rutberg revealed during an interview with Inverse that Netflix made the decision to stop producing the critically acclaimed Marvel shows. Furthermore, the former head of Marvel Television, Jeph Loeb, echoed this fact by claiming that "It was not a decision that Marvel made, it was a decision that Netflix made". But why would the streaming giant not develop an IP that would seem so valuable?
The Netflix Marvel shows were too expensive and had low viewership
According to a report by Variety, more than $200 million was spent on bringing the street-level heroes to life on the small screen. This is a huge number that needed many viewers to justify the investment, especially when considering that two different companies had to make money from the shows. Unfortunately, interest in the Marvel Netflix series was dying as fewer people tuned in with the release of each season.
The Punisher suffered a 40% drop in viewership between its first and second season, as reported by Business Insider. While it's a huge decline, it wasn't as dramatic as that of its other sibling shows. Daredevil suffered a 57% drop between seasons 2 and 3, while Iron Fist had the shorter end of the stick with a 64% drop. Needless to say, a lot of money was being spent on projects that weren't generating enough interest in return.
Under that light, it wouldn't be too far-fetched to assume that Netflix saw the end of its deal with Disney as an "escape" of sorts. After all, they would no longer be legally obligated to keep producing expensive series that were quickly dying with each new season. Besides, they were about to face yet another major problem thanks to the release of Disney+.
Disney+ was going to be a game-changer
For the longest time, fans wondered if the events of The Punisher and Daredevil were even canon to the MCU (a question that wasn't fully answered until very recently). While a few easter eggs hinted that both worlds were related, there was never a proper confirmation despite the promises that "it was all connected". Had the collaboration been extended past 2018, chances are the same problem would've plagued the Netflix shows. On the other hand, Disney was just about to release WandaVision: A series starring big Marvel characters audiences had seen on the big screen before.
Netflix would've had a great disadvantage had it kept producing Marvel projects, given that they would've been relegated to a little isolated corner of the MCU. Meanwhile, big heroes such as Captain Marvel were going to make cameo appearances in Disney+ shows such as Ms. Marvel. What was once a collaboration between two industry giants would've turned into a competition where one of them had the clear upper hand. With that in mind, the best move was to allow the deal to come to an end before the situation got even more dire.
Fortunately, there seems to be a very bright future ahead for all of the key characters featured in The Defenders universe. Frank Castle, Matt Murdock, and Wilson Fisk recently stole he spotlight during the first season of Daredevil: Born Again. Furthermore, it's been heavily rumored that characters such as Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist will make a comeback during the second season. As if that wasn't enough, The Punisher is slated to have his own Disney+ special presentation in 2026.
It took many years for the street-level Marvel heroes to properly join the MCU. Fortunately, it all worked out at the end, and it now feels like their story is only beginning. Fingers crossed it won't be long before we see them join the big leagues and appear in an Avengers movie (could Endgame be the one?).
The Punisher Special Presentation will be released in 2026.