FRONTIER CRUCIBLE Star Thomas Jane on Why He Was ‘Miscast’ as Frank Castle in THE PUNISHER (Exclusive)
Border Crucible comes to us from the producer of Bone Tomahawk and kicks off with a wagon carrying crucial medical supplies that need to be transported across hostile territory. The only man who can guide him to his destination is Merrick Beckford, but to get there he will have to enlist the help of a trio of dangerous outlaws determined to survive.
However, when they accidentally kill an Apache scout, all bets are off and survival is the name of the game in director Travis Mills’ Western thriller.
The cast includes Thomas Jane, William H. Macy, Armie Hammer, Eli Brown, Ryan Masson, Zane Holtz, Eddie Spears and two star turns from newcomers Myles Clohessy and Mary Stickley. You can pre-order Border Crucible now on Apple TV.
Earlier this week, we had the chance to sit down with Thomas Jane to discuss his role as Charlie “Mule” McKee. The leader of a trio of outlaws, you never really know if you can trust him, and the actor delivers an incredible performance in scenes that will leave you speechless.
Of course, many of you know Jane best for her role as Frank Castle in 2004. The Punisher. He would later reprise the role in the acclaimed 2012 short film, The Punisher: Dirty Laundryand could be one of those returning Avengers: Secret Wars for a final goodbye.
When we asked Jane if he would be willing to come back as Frank, he raised his eyebrows and dodged the question! “I was very passionate about it.” he remembers. “I made a short film called ‘Dirty Laundry’ that I produced and edited. I had a great time and I’m very grateful to have been introduced to the world. I’m a huge comic book fan.”
It looks like we’ll have to wait and see if Jane gets one more chance to play The Punisher, but he’s happy to have passed the baton to Daredevil: Born Again And Spider-Man: A Whole New Day star Jon Bernthal.
“I was miscast as Frank Castle,” the actor tells us in the video above. “He’s Italian. He has dark hair and a completely different lineage. He was born in the ’70s, the opposite of the Italian mafia. They had briefly taken over the world, and The Godfather came out of that too. Frank was the answer to that. Francis Castiglione. I’m not that guy. I had to dye my hair black and become a different man.”
“I’m glad the role is being played by someone better suited to the role. I had fun and I did my best. I’m very grateful, but I’m not that guy.”
Even though the door is closed on the idea of him playing Frank again, Jane isn’t done with comics. He has The Lycan on the way, a series which, according to him, would cause a sensation “great” movie.
“My graphic novel is being finished with Comixology. It’s called The Lycan. It’s obviously a werewolf book about a gang of big game hunters in the late 1700s.” Jane teased. “They are shipwrecked on an island that has a bit of a wolf problem. Mike Carey wrote the screenplay. I’m really proud of the Lycan. We are currently putting the finishing touches on number six. That’ll come out in December, and then we’ll release the graphic novel next year. You can view it on Kindle.”
If you want to check The Lycanthen you can catch up on the series right now by heading over to Amazon.
Frontier Crucible arrives in theaters and digitally on December 5, 2025.
