Thomas Jane Reflects On The Positives & Negatives Of THE PUNISHER (2004)

In two weeks, the Gasparilla Film Festival will be bestowing Thomas Jane with their International Career Achievement Award. To showcase Jane's talent, the festival will screen The Punisher. Jane recently spoke with ET about the film. Check it out.

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By nailbiter111 - 3/12/2013

Entertainment Tonight recently caught up with actor, Thomas Jane to discuss some of the more memorable films that he has made. To kick things of the reporter, Jarrett Wieselman, suggests that The Punisher, which debuted almost ten years ago, has a cult following. "Yes, I've heard that from a lot of people," Thomas Jane chimes in. "I'm happy the movie has real fans out there."

The film only pulled in $55 million worldwide at the box office, however, DVD sales were quite strong, adding an additional $60 million, bumping up the overall take to $115 million.

ETonline: When was the last time you watched it?

Jane: I've never really seen the whole thing. I usually sneak out of my premieres; go in the front door and right out the back [laughs]. I'm not a fan of watching my work. When I was a young actor, I watched myself so I could figure out what kind of animal I was. Billy Bob Thornton told me every actor needs to figure out what kind of animal they are so they can be that animal, but I don't think I've figured that out yet. I guess I want to be all the animals.

ETonline: What do you recall from making The Punisher?

Jane: It was hard, but rewarding. We didn't have any problems making the movie, although we tried to make Tampa look as menacing as it could ... which was troubling at times. Don't get me wrong, I had a great time in Florida, but creatively I wasn't a fan of making The Punisher in Florida. I never thought that went together very well. I thought there were better places for us to shoot the thing, but once I was down there, everyone was so great.

ETonline: In retrospect, the movie seems to have embraced a superhero aesthetic that didn't really become popular until Christopher Nolan rebooted Batman. Do you think it would be more successful if released today?

Jane: I think we were the victim of Marvel's success with more cartoon-y superhero movies. There was a strong desire to keep some of that cartoon element in our movie, but I really wanted it to be dark and I think most Punisher fans did too. But people hadn't really cracked the idea that a comic book movie didn't have to look like a comic book yet. Without trying to toot my own horn, I feel like I was very instrumental in fighting for more realistic version of The Punisher. I remember bringing in Tim Bradstreet's very dark comic book covers to production meetings and saying this is what we have to make the movie look like. I won some of those battles and I lost others because there really was no precedent. It was a product of its time. There was no Dark Knight for these guys to lean on, so I'm happy that I got as much dark realism into the movie. All that said, I still think the fight that Kevin Nash and I put together set to opera music is a really entertaining piece of work.

ETonline: Last year you reprised the role in a super dark online short, Dirty Laundry (watch below). What fueled that?

Jane: I'd been talking about my vision of The Punisher for years, and I finally hit on the idea of a short film that could show people my ideas. Then it became about finding the perfect guys to bring that vision to life, for me, the ideal guy was Phil Joanou. I happened to have met him a few months prior to landing on this idea, so he was the first guy I called. He really got on board. Chad St. John wrote my favorite script I've ever read called Motor City, which was basically a 100 page action film with no dialogue. It was a piece of brilliance, so we hatched what became Dirty Laundry, which was very satisfying because I didn't have to explain very much what I was talking about. We all liked the same stuff, had the same reference points and it was a great lesson for me. The success of it was vindicating. It felt good that my version of the character resonated with people.

ETonline: Can you envision playing Frank Castle ever again?

Jane: It was sort of my farewell to the character. I just wanted to get that out.

THE PUNISHER (2004) was directed by Jonathan Hensleigh ("Kill the Irishman"), from a screenplay written by Hensleigh and Michael France. The cast included: Thomas Jane as Frank Castle / The Punisher, John Travolta as Howard Saint, Roy Scheider as Frank Castle, Sr., Will Patton as Quentin Glass, Rebecca Romijn as Joan, Laura Harring as Livia Saint and Ben Foster as Spacker Dave. The film earned $54 million at the worldwide box office, against a budget of $33 million.

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59 Comments

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	jessepostal - 3/12/2013, 6:51 PM Login to report abuse Im extremely happy he's saying goodbye to the character!!!!
	DeadManDann - 3/12/2013, 6:58 PM Login to report abuse I enjoyed his take on the character. Shame he never got to make the film he wanted to-- a full-length one, anyhow.
	sameoldthing - 3/12/2013, 7:16 PM Login to report abuse Janes Punisher was good,the movie was just decent overall. It had some great moments like the fight with Russian & his attack on the mobsters at end. Parts like him being undercover FBI & being in Tampa was weak. Ray Stevenson was a great Punisher in another film that had cool moments in a sub-par movie. We need a "perfect" Punisher film someday.
	mattattack - 3/12/2013, 7:36 PM Login to report abuse I loved his Punisher. War Zone is and always will be [frick] I N G S H I T
	crazyish - 3/12/2013, 7:38 PM Login to report abuse I loved the short. I took it as an older Frank who didn't want to get involved until he realized that he couldn't just sit by and let it happen. I thought he was great in the 2004 movie...it's just unfortunate that we had to watch the Punisher chase Travolta around Florida....
	TankD - 3/12/2013, 7:43 PM Login to report abuse god that is an awesome short film.
	FrostyVoice - 3/12/2013, 7:44 PM Login to report abuse It's a shame. I actually really enjoyed both of his incarnates of the character. I know folks have their own issues with the film but many of those folks liked GL, which I didn't. Different tastes. His representation was solid. I agree that Tampa was not the right setting but the plot worked there.
	deanwilkins - 3/12/2013, 7:48 PM Login to report abuse I want him back. I enjoyed his Punisher film, though I wanted much more from it. I loved his short film. This guy is the only guy I trust to get Punisher right in the way I want to see him.
	1geekygurl - 3/12/2013, 7:50 PM Login to report abuse Just watch Death Wish #1 and especially #2 if you want to see a good vigilante film. But do not watch Death Wish 3, 4 or 5.
	Sortis - 3/12/2013, 7:54 PM Login to report abuse I wish he wasn't saying goodbye, he could give us a real good trilogy if Marvel would wise up and let him.
	Jollem - 3/12/2013, 7:56 PM Login to report abuse the extended cut is very much better
	captainrogers - 3/12/2013, 7:56 PM Login to report abuse I liked the short. I took the part of him being "six months sober" applied to him trying to stop being the Punisher. Then he buys the bottle of Jack.
	Tainted87 - 3/12/2013, 7:57 PM Login to report abuse Gasparilla was in February..... weird. As someone who's lived in Tampa for 24 of my 25 years, I can safely say they went in BLIND to my hometown. There is a very gritty, nasty part of town that hasn't changed since my family moved here - but it isn't framed by highrises. It is kind of amusing, the locations they picked. Blake High School is right next to the Projects, just down the street from where Frank's tenement building USED to be (they demolished it a few years ago). Pretty seedy part of town. It kind of sat in between that high school and one very hellish middle school where I spent 6th and 7th only a block away. But just across the street from the "Saints and Sinners Club" is the University of Tampa, which can be seen on the river in the background where people are rowing (the ONLY people allowed to use that part of the river are college students). I had a relief sculpture from high school featured in an art gallery at said University the very year the Punisher was filmed. You can imagine, all of Tampa was in all seriousness THRILLED to host the Punisher, regardless of how the movie turned out.
	SotoJuiceMan - 3/12/2013, 7:59 PM Login to report abuse I didn't understand the need to shoot in Tampa either. The cities crime-rate is not that bad, around Tampa their are four safe cities, its a pretty cool place to live at honestly. Choosing Tampa was a stupid decision, should of been Miami, or hell Detroit!
	SotoJuiceMan - 3/12/2013, 8:00 PM Login to report abuse OH MY GOD TAINTED YOU KNOW TAMPA!
	Jaspion - 3/12/2013, 8:01 PM Login to report abuse I loved his Punisher actually. Very fun movie. Still wondering if he'd be a good Batman.
	Tainted87 - 3/12/2013, 8:03 PM Login to report abuse @SotoJuiceMan Yep, grew up [t]here :)
	marvel72 - 3/12/2013, 8:03 PM Login to report abuse punisher war zone is the most comic accurate punisher from origin to violence,a guilty pleasure of mine.
	LFANCH - 3/12/2013, 8:11 PM Login to report abuse The Joker theme in that short is really bothering me.
	ATrueHero1987 - 3/12/2013, 8:13 PM Login to report abuse there were several reason why they filmed it in Tampa.One of the reason was because it was cheap. What killed that movie was the constant budget cuts and being released the same day as Kill Bill Vol. 2(what idiots thought that was a good idea?) Still, I prefer this version of that sorry Punisher: War Zone.
	SotoJuiceMan - 3/12/2013, 8:14 PM Login to report abuse @Tainted87- I've been around Tampa for about 6 years. I gotta tell you it's one hell of a transition from what I'm used too.
	SotoJuiceMan - 3/12/2013, 8:20 PM Login to report abuse @Marvel87- Yea I guess, but there could of been a lot more other places than Tampa. It should of taken place in Jersey.
	ATrueHero1987 - 3/12/2013, 8:25 PM Login to report abuse @SotoJuiceMan Yea, I would've preferred NYC. Originally, it was going to take place in Miami, FL(when Michael France first wrote his screenplay) then when Jonathan Hensleigh come on, they moved it to Tampa.
	Tainted87 - 3/12/2013, 8:35 PM Login to report abuse @Soto Everyone says it's one boring-ass place with nothing but clubs in Ybor and Busch Gardens. People usually move down here because it offers cheap living. Nothing wrong with that (it's why my family moved here), but the turnover rate is pretty high. Not many over the age of 50 can say they were born and raised in Tampa. Anyway, I live near Lutz.
	SotoJuiceMan - 3/12/2013, 8:42 PM Login to report abuse I agree, tis the reason my family moved down here in Tampa too. It's not that bad around here, I like it. I noticed a lot of people here are nice and that's something I rarely saw as a kid in Jersey. It was a pretty nice transition....except for everything being too damn far apart. I hated that, need a car for every single thing. I actually remember working at Busch, pretty great job if it wasn't for the visitors...bunch of assholes! I live near Brandon, 30 minutes away from Tampa.
	Tainted87 - 3/12/2013, 8:46 PM Login to report abuse @Marvel87 All things considered though, Hensleigh didn't have a lot to work with. Miami would have been too expensive - he was just looking after the budget. They made Palm Harbor double as Puerto Rico (hahahaha....) and had an extremely tight schedule to work with. Filming was over in a matter of weeks.
	fettastic - 3/12/2013, 8:46 PM Login to report abuse It was a pretty good movie, although I agree shooting it in fricken' Florida was a flawed idea from the start. I also agree that fight scene was the highlight. That whole tenement section of the film as based on a cominc called Welcome Back Frank as I recall. Although War Zone was a pretty close approximation of the comic (aside from the completely bizarre interpretation of Jigsaw), it is less memorable.
	Chloefornication - 3/12/2013, 8:48 PM Login to report abuse I like him as Castle. A decent punisher movie with him would be great.
	ATrueHero1987 - 3/12/2013, 8:51 PM Login to report abuse @Tainted87 lol! Hell yea. I remember I was following production of this movie real close on SuperHeroHype(aww, SHH). They sure did have a tight schedule. I tell you one thing, after that movie came out, I wanted to move to Tampa. I hope to move there around this time next year.
	fettastic - 3/12/2013, 8:52 PM Login to report abuse I've always liked Thomas Jane. If you haven't seen Thursday, check it out. Sort of a Tarantinoish crime drama laced with black humor. Aaron Eckhart co-stars.
	hope420 - 3/12/2013, 9:01 PM Login to report abuse I said it before and I will say it again! Thomas Janes Punisher movie was basically a remake or tribute to Mad Max.
	Superguy15 - 3/12/2013, 9:03 PM Login to report abuse He was my favorite PUNISHER. Would be great if they turned DIRTY LAUNDRY into the 1st episode if a web-series, with each episode a self-contained story of the Punisher taking on street gangs or drug dealers. That would be awesome!
	Woodkid - 3/12/2013, 9:08 PM Login to report abuse The Dark Knight score in the short is so distracting, definitely doesn't fit..
	fettastic - 3/12/2013, 9:21 PM Login to report abuse What makes Punisher comics great is that they are hardcore, [frick]ed-up stories. It's hard to describe but they revel in human depravity, people being victimized by other people as well as bad environments and situations. Basically, shit is so bad that a psycho with an arsenal shooting the place to shit seems like a really good idea! Frank is so far gone that it's all about justice to him. Making the guilty pay. That's all he cares about. Show him where the worst of the worst is and he will be like an a-bomb in a skull shirt on their world. The stories are very over-the-top and kind of disturbing, but cleansing in a [frick]ed-up way. There are always victims in the wake. Sometimes better off, sometimes worse off. Frank is not unsympathetic to their predicaments, but it's not about them. It's about punishment. War Zone came very close to that formula, just not with much style or charm. I felt like that movie was sort of a color by numbers painting. All the pieces were where they were supposed to be, but it seemed kind of forced and artificial. Maybe it really is lightning in a bottle and film just can't capture the internal monologue that makes those comics so affecting.
	TheRationalOne - 3/12/2013, 9:43 PM Login to report abuse War Zone sucked super hard. I love this Punisher movie tho. I don't give a rats ass if it followed the comic exactly or not. It was a good movie on its own merits. War Zone followed the comic about as well as you could expect and it still sucked ass. Herein lies the problem Hollywood has with making these movies super faithful like you fanboys want every single time. You schmucks are the ONLY ones who will like them.
	NoJobBOB - 3/12/2013, 9:53 PM Login to report abuse Thomas Jane was awesome in The Punisher. Sucks it was such an early Marvel film. If it came out now it would be so much better. It was bad ass though.
	NoJobBOB - 3/12/2013, 9:55 PM Login to report abuse
	zachshivey - 3/12/2013, 10:09 PM Login to report abuse I agree with @NoJobBOB....it would be a hit today for sure. It was too early for a darker CBM
	m0th3r - 3/12/2013, 10:15 PM Login to report abuse @jCameron I love the violence in the second one too..Ray had the look, it wasnt a great movie, but had a few great moments...the shotgun blast to the face is in top 10 ever.. :)
	SlaveMasterFlexXx - 3/12/2013, 10:20 PM Login to report abuse Dolph Lundgren is still the Best Punisher! No but really 3 attempts that missed the mark. Tom Janes decent flick but not punisher, Warzone nothing against Stevenson but all around shit movie. The short was fun lil goodbye I liked minus tdk score. I don't really care to give the character another movie but as a reappearing character in MCU but I doubt it would happen he's too violent for Disney.
	NPaMusic - 3/12/2013, 11:33 PM Login to report abuse the movie was amazing, i wish he'd reprise his role in another Punisher film. He was fantastic in the role, and I never saw the sequel because he was NOT in it. I dont know why people like that other guy so much. I do see how they enjoyed the action in the other film, it was directed by someone completely different. Different vision, if Thomas Jane was THAT Punisher.. I'd watch that flick.
	jerryblake - 3/12/2013, 11:39 PM Login to report abuse it was good movie - for first 20 minutes or so, on the island. Then we went to Florida, met the new neighbors, have a coffee with a killer (he did even write a song for us), played baseball with a Mother Russia. Next thing we know we where bombing cars in the shape of Punisher skulls. It just didn't worked. Jane was good (but Dolph nailed it. His best role to date) still, it was far better than War Zone. Now reboot The Punisher. Here, I show you how Just adapt Year One.
	jerryblake - 3/12/2013, 11:40 PM Login to report abuse BEST PUNISHER GRAPHIC NOVEL EVER (in my humble opinion)
	MrChuff - 3/13/2013, 4:12 AM Login to report abuse Marvel should talk to HBO and get a Punisher series on the go.... Coz you just know Marvel/Disney dont have ANY plans for this character.
	Bread - 3/13/2013, 4:15 AM Login to report abuse Tom was a great Punisher, but the script sucked. He proved that he is the perfect Punisher with Dirty Laundry. I think he's an even better punisher now because he's more aged and mean looking.
	StrangerX - 3/13/2013, 4:53 AM Login to report abuse Both actors imo did well as punisher. I just the rest of the cast. Almost like they tried to hard to please everyone. I would actually give Affleck and favreau a daredevil punisher team up. With both hunting each other down at first then finding out they have a common enemy.Affleck directs and focuses on the human drama. Favreau works his magic prducing providing that comic book aspect.
	Foxpaw - 3/13/2013, 5:31 AM Login to report abuse Disney I imagine a little frightened by Marvel Knights characters in general. I can't see them embracing the likes of Ghost Rider, Blade and the Punisher without having them like the 90's Spider-Man series had them. Characters who should get TV shows and not movies are Punisher, Daredevil and Power Man. Blade doesn't work as vampires get monotonous... Hulk won't work, because that is a lot of CGI for a lead character that would just grunt mostly. and seeing Banner getvcaught up for Hulk to smash every week would also get monotonous. blade and Hulk are novelty characters, and should appear to surprise instead hold the limelight. Punisher would be your dark detective series. Daredevil your law and order series. And Power Man is a pioneering concept for his own series. A well established superhero that has the most humble of roots and scenario compared to others, and it's a very different type of a series that would add something different to ordinary viewers even. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s should be about Coulson, Romanov and Barton, and not just Coulson, and should explain to everyone, fans or neutrals, just why these three get to hang around Iron Man, Thor and Captain America more than other agents do. That's what I would like to see.
	knocturnalzen10 - 3/13/2013, 7:08 AM Login to report abuse hard to make a true story punisher flick an it be something that did well in the box office............. frank is the real animal , u know it's a problem when captain america is uncomfortable around him frank isn't a hero at all , hell he's barely human . will hard for movie goers to relate to his character
	SlaveMasterFlexXx - 3/13/2013, 7:21 AM Login to report abuse Marvel should make a Marvel Knights division on the smaller scale side that focuses on their darker characters and can connect to the MCU but overall doesn't affect it or depend on what the avengers are doing next.
	fettastic - 3/13/2013, 7:23 AM Login to report abuse You guys aren't giving Disney enough credit. They owned Miramax and Dimension. They've made plenty of ultra-violent fare. Heck, Disney made The Black Hole, which is a pretty dark movie. Disney is like any other company, they want to make money. If they decide that making a violent Punisher film will make them money, then they will make one. They won't by the way, but not because it would be violent, but because that character has had three strikes already.
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