Two Marvel Films Reportedly Leaving HBO Max
Firmly established as a Disney property, it appears as though some classic Marvel Studios films are leaving their streaming homes as two Marvel films are reportedly leaving HBO Max.
Long before the MCU was the present entity that fans so often consider it, Marvel Studios was developing film projects in conjunction with varying studios.
Photo: Marvel
With 2008s Iron Man establishing itself as the film that jumpstarted the current incarnation of the MCU, and Disney+ being featured as the streaming home for Marvel films, it is only a matter of time before previous Marvel films start to leave their streaming services.
It appears as though two Marvel films are reportedly leaving HBO Max with their licensing rights expiring as of this year.
Source: Lionsgate
First reported by ComicBook.com, as of January 31st HBO MAx will say goodbye to both 2004s The Punisher, and 2008s Punisher: War Zone; as both previous Lionsgate films are set to expire.
Both films act as previous attempts for Marvel and Lionsgate to adapt the Punisher character, once starring Thomas Jane in the original, and again in a rebooted version of the character played by Ray Stevenson.
Punisher: War Zone. Photo: Lionsgate
Both films are incredibly violent and present the more brutal aspects of the Frank Castle character, yet lack some of the more human elements that make him so beloved by fans of the source material.
The character was rebooted once again in Marvel’s Netflix collaboration starring veteran Walking Dead actor Jon Bernthal; first as a recurring character on Daredevils second season, and again for his own solo series.
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Bernthal’s iteration of the character has often been praised as one of the most faithful adaptations, with his interactions with Daredevil and Wilson Fisk both working to establish the also sociopathic nature of the vigilante.
With Charlie Cox Matt Murdoch and Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk both appearing in MCU projects in 2021, many have petitioned to have Bernthal reprise his role as Frank Castle at some point in the current MCU.
Photo: Netflix
