corbin bernsen
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Netflix’s ‘The Punisher’ was not part of its initial offering of Marvel Comics-inspired shows, but after Jon Bernthal‘s intense performance as Frank Castle in ‘Daredevil’ Season Two, the character was quickly greenlit for his own series.  That also appears to have been well-received, as the show is gearing up for a second season, with several new cast members.

It has already been announced that  Josh Stewart, Floriana Lima, and Giorgia Whigham have been added as John Pilgrim, Krista Dumont, and Amy Bendix, respectively.  Now two veteran actors have also been cast as what appear to be the main villains of the sophomore installment.

Corbin Bernsen and Annette O’Toole have been cast as Anderson and Eliza Schultz.  Anderson is described as “an extremely wealthy man who’s grown accustomed to getting his way. His power and legacy are of prime importance, and he’ll implement less-than-legal means to further those ends,” while Eliza is listed as “a conniving, wealthy woman, cut from the same manipulative cloth as her husband, Anderson.”

Executive producer and head of Marvel Television, Jeph Loeb stated:

“We are delighted to have Annette and Corbin join the remarkable talent this season. Our audience will enjoy them in very unexpected but perfectly cast roles.”

Fellow executive producer Steve Lightfoot added:

“I’m very excited to have actors of this caliber and talent of Corbin and Annette joining us on Marvel’s The Punisher.”

annette o'toole
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O’Toole’s most recent regular TV work was as Susan Emerson on AMC’s ‘Halt and Catch Fire’.  She also appeared in the Netflix movie ‘A Futile and Stupid Gesture’.  Among genre fans, she is probably best recognized for playing Lana Lang in 1983’s ‘Superman III’ and later for playing Superman’s mother, Martha Kent on ‘Smallville’.  She also portrayed the adult Beverly Marsh in the original TV miniseries adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘It’.  So, O’Toole is a pro at performing in superhero and genre programming.

Bernsen also has some superhero experience, having recently appeared on the short-lived sitcom ‘Powerless’.  He first gained notice in the 1980s on the prime time soap opera ‘L.A. Law’ and appeared in the ‘Major League’ movies.  He has worked extensively in daytime soaps, having had regular roles on ‘Ryan’s Hope’, ‘General Hospital’ and ‘The Young and the Restless’.  He also had a recurring role on ‘Psych’ and appeared in last year’s ‘Psych: The Movie’ and appears on the current season of ‘Hap and Leonard’.  He turned in a memorable performance in season one of Starz’s ‘American Gods’ as Vulcan, the Roman god of fire, reinvented for modern times as a firearms manufacturer.

‘The Punisher’ season two is currently in production, so no release date has been announced.  Check back for updates as we learn them.

Source: Super Hero Hype