Earlier this year, we learned that The Punisher was cancelled, alongside all of the other Marvel shows on Netflix, which was pretty devastating for fans.
But one person who wasn't as downtrodden was actor Ben Barnes, who played Billy Russo/Jigsaw in the series. In fact, he was actually happy about it!
Related: Exclusive — The Punisher star Ben Barnes has been in talks to play a Marvel superhero
"I was not privy to the information that we wouldn’t be having a third season at that point," he exclusively told Digital Spy. "But now that I know that we weren’t going to, I’m actually really honoured and pleased about that, because it makes my story complete. And I really like telling full stories.
"The TV shows that just drag on and on for 27 seasons, and you just solve a new thing every week – it’s not my cup of tea."
He continued: "I like stories about people and emotions and redemption and shame and sorrow and all those kinds of things. I’d like to bring those human elements to all people, because I think everyone has the capacity to feel everything.
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"Even in a show that’s kind of a violent show like that, and kind of a borderline superhero show and a war story about the trauma of men – I still want to feel the vulnerability in it, and I still want to feel the confusion in it. It felt really good to have the opportunity to play such a confused character."
Barnes will next appear on our screens in the BBC One miniseries Gold Digger – which is not about the making of the iconic Kanye West song.
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Joe Anderton is a freelance news writer at Digital Spy, having worked there since 2016. In his time, he's covered a host of live events and interviewed celebrities big and small. A big fan of TV and movies both mainstream and obscure, Joe also enjoys video games and in particular PlayStation. Joe currently does not use Twitter, but he only ever used it to tell people to watch the film Help! I'm a Fish.
After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.
In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.
David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.
Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends.
As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound.
