12 New TV Characters We Can't Wait To Meet In 2017

Although the Netflix Marvel series have thus far centred on The Defenders, once that's done this year things will move in a much darker direction (and the shows have already had a fair bit of darkness already), with a Punisher solo series.

Anticipation is understandably high, given Jon Bernthal delivered arguably the definitive live-action take on the character in Daredevil Season 2. While Bernthal's Frank Castle is the main draw, there'll be a host of great supporting players, not least of whom is Ben Barnes' Billy Russo.

In a departure from the comics, where he's typically a hitman, he'll be Castle's best friend from when they were in Special Forces, and the man who runs private military corporation Anvil.

However, Jigsaw has been at various points one of the Punisher's greatest enemies, which means it'd be a major surprise if we didn't see him in the TV series. Given the change in backstory it means we'll likely see the transformation happen on-screen, including the maiming of his face, which will help better establish both the conflict between the pair and the dark tone of the show.

Bringing in a Special Forces backstory means that he'll be an equal match for Castle in terms of strength and strategy (something the character was without training to be fair), plus more of a personal edge if they were previously friends, and should prove great for both action and drama, with Barnes a good fit for the character's jackass nature.