'Punisher' Gets Adult In 'War Zone'

So, how does this follow-up to 2004's "The Punisher" differ?

First off, the role of Punisher/Frank Castle won't be played by Thomas Jane, instead Ray Stevenson ("Rome") gets to play vigilante this time around. Also, the film won't end up in Tampa, Fla., as it did the first time around.

This time the writers are trying to get a little more adult with the content, finding themselves inspired by the style found in the "Punisher" comic books.

"... (W)e went and started discovering the comics, the Garth Ennis series," co-writer Art Marcum told Sci Fi Wire. "We loved it. So immediately we just thought that sensibility -- Garth's sensibility -- needs to be in the script and on the screen. So that was our starting point."

Garth Ennis is an Irish comic book writer best known for his DC/Vertigo series "Preacher" and his triumphant revival of Marvel Comics' "Punisher" during his four-year run with the book. That series of "Punisher" was published under Marvel's MAX imprint, which was designed for adult audiences. Ennis is well known for his writing style that often has extreme violence, profanity, dark comedy, and a disdain for superheroes (the MAX version was void of any such superheroes).

Director Lexi Alexander's blog (http://lexialexander.com/) said not to "expect this Punisher to be set in an ultra-realistic world. Real crime stories and comic books are two different worlds for me. It was my first priority to please 'The Punisher' comic book fans. This film is about the mythology of Frank Castle, it is ultra violent."

In the film, Castle has been racking up quite the body count during his one-man war against crime. But, after disfiguring mob boss Billy Russoti, the Punisher finds himself hunted by the revenge-obsessed Russoti's (now calling himself Jigsaw) army.

Marcum wrote the script with writing partner Matt Holloway ("Iron Man"). They developed it from the initial draft written by writer-producer Nick Santora ("Prison Break"). Although it isn't an origin story, Marcum believes that "War Zone" has enough to get viewers caught up.

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