'The Punisher' Cancels New York Comic Con Panel After Las Vegas Tragedy
Marvel's "The Punisher" is pulling out from this year's New York Comic Con, after the tragic shooting in Las Vegas. The show was supposed to be part of Netflix and Marvel's panel on Saturday, Oct. 7.
Netflix and Marvel have released a joint statement about their decision to cancel "The Punisher" for the New York Comic Con. The two media companies simply said that carrying on with the gun-themed series for the weekend panel would not be the right thing to do, as they said in their brief message.
"We are stunned and saddened by this week's senseless act in Las Vegas," the statement began, referring to the tragic shooting at the Route 91 Harvest outdoor music festival on Oct. 1.
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"After careful consideration, Netflix and Marvel have decided it wouldn't be appropriate for Marvel's The Punisher to participate in New York Comic Con," Marvel and Netflix said, adding that their thoughts go out to the victims of the mass shooting.
Guns and shooting is a central theme for the Jon Bernthal-led TV adaptation of Marvel's anti-hero, and violence is a major part of the show, as Deadline notes. Bernthal plays the vigilante Punisher, a man out of revenge with no qualms on how he goes about it, which he does mainly with the use of firearms.
"The Punisher" panel was originally scheduled to run on Saturday, Oct. 7, at 5:15 p.m. EDT, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. The organizers of the New York Comic Con plan to fill in the gap with another panel.
"New York Comic Con wholeheartedly supports Netflix & Marvel's decision to cancel Saturday's The Punisher panel," the statement from NYCC said on Wednesday, Oct. 4, even as they scramble for a replacement.
Aside from what could be a set of episode titles teased by Netflix, there's no specific release date for "The Punisher" as of this time, other than that it's coming this year. The video below shows the new official trailer just released for the show.