A big questions fans (and yours truly) have had about ‘The Punisher’ Season 2 so far is what exactly Ben Barnes’s Billy Russo/ Jigsaw is going to look like this season, especially since the footage released from on-set did not seem to have any noticeable facial scarring that we could see. This is a hallmark of the character and should be apparent after Frank Castle scraped his head across a shattered mirror last season, though admittedly the shots of Jigsaw were from far away. Luckily for us, a new Instagram post includes some close-up photos of Ben Barnes in character on set, where we can finally see how the MCU’s Jigsaw is really going to look.
Personally, I think they made the right choice here, going for more subtle and realistic scars, unlike the gruesome, Frankenstein-esque ones seen in the comics and the other live-screen adaptations of Jigsaw (the terrible movies put out in the early 2000s). The scars are clearly present, and do distort the “handsomeness” of Barnes in a way that is sure to mess with the character’s ego and psyche, but not so much so that we cannot see Barnes’s real face which allows him to actually act and us to still connect with the character we came to know during Season 1.
Now as to the role Jigsaw will play in the season, that is still anyone’s guess. The footage we’ve seen so far has him battling on the streets with Frank, looking to clearly have the upper hand, which could make sense with the rumors that Season 2 may partially follow the ‘Suicide Run’ arc from the comics where Frank is badly injured and takes refuge in a small town to recover. This could potentially make Jigsaw the one to temporarily take Frank down. The storyline also involves Copycat Punishers popping up to take Frank’s place, and I could see them going up against and dying while fighting Jigsaw with only Frank able to take down his former friend once he returns.
What are your thoughts on the Jigsaw look for ‘The Punisher’ season 2? Check out the Instagram images below and feel free to share your opinions in the comments!
