Norman Reedus' The Walking Dead Replacement Series Is The Punisher Meets John Wick
Faith Roswell is a Senior Writer on Screen Rant's Classic TV team. Since earning her degree in Creative Writing over a decade ago, Faith has written articles on film and TV from a variety of different angles. Faith now combines her knowledge of psychology with her love of monster movies to give more insight into what makes the best ones.
You may have read her Screen Rant lists and features covering horror, sci-fi, and fantasy, or read her Amazon Top 10 book, "Movie Monsters of the Deep."
Faith has had an extensive career as a writer, appearing on BBC live radio, researching true crime for Rotten Mango podcast, and writing for publications including Mental Floss, Atlas Obscura, and The Daily Jaws before beginning here at Screen Rant.
After a career appearing in mostly independent productions, playing The Walking Dead's Daryl Dixon turned Norman Reedus into a major star, and his next upcoming project looks set to show us a different side of the actor. After his first introduction as an angry survivalist with a grudge against the world, it is not surprising that Daryl Dixon nearly became a Walking Dead franchise villain. However, Reedus' performance gave the character a vulnerable side that turned Daryl into a fan favorite character despite not even appearing in the Walking Dead comics.
Following such a meteoric rise in popularity among the Walking Dead fandom, it felt almost inevitable that Daryl Dixon would get his own spinoff, and of all The Walking Dead TV shows, this has been considerably more successful than many, despite also suffering from issues that polarized audiences and critics. With Daryl Dixon ending after season 4 and marking the end of an era for the franchise, Norman Reedus is stepping into his first post-Walking Dead role. This is the Apple TV show, Disavowed, an explosive spy-themed crime thriller that combines John Wick and The Punisher.
Norman Reedus Will Appear In Disavowed, A Mix Of The Punisher And John Wick
Between his Walking Dead commitments, Reedus has mostly stayed with voice roles and his travel series, but Disavowed is the first fictional live-action TV project to feature the actor since the game-changing zombie franchise made his career. The show, which will also star James Marsden (Paradise,) follows CIA agent Brad Griffin, who is fired in the middle of a hunt for the assassin who murdered his colleague, and goes rogue, aiming to hunt down the assassin himself and collect the $15 million bounty. With Marsden playing Griffin, Reedus' role has not yet been confirmed.
Norman Reedus voices The Punisher in Iron Man: Rise of Technovore, while his Walking Dead co-star, Jon Bernthal, plays his live-action counterpart.
James Marsden's best movies and TV shows are an eclectic mix of genres, and Disavowed's tone is not yet known. That said, the subject matter alone has drawn comparisons to both the John Wick franchise and The Punisher. The series' "revenge mission" theme echoes that of John Wick, and it is almost certain to include some of the franchise's cat and mouse elements, as well as some great fight scenes. Fans of The Punisher may also find the central character's description familiar, with someone taking the law into his own hands with skills he learned in an official capacity.
The show is an original creation, and with IMDb only listing Marsden and Reedus so far, this leaves plenty of room for speculation over who Reedus will be playing. The only other characters mentioned in Disavowed's premise are Griffin's dead colleague and the as-of-yet unnamed assassin, which feels like a more likely part for Reedus. Still, a role like this could present a major challenge for the actor, whose association with his most iconic character is still fresh in viewers' minds.
Reedus May Find Breaking Away From Daryl Dixon A Challenge
Much will depend on who Reedus will be playing in Disavowed, but it is highly possible that he will be playing the assassin, giving Reedus the chance to play the villain that The Walking Dead franchise could have had. While it was certainly the right decision to make Daryl a protagonist, his skillset would have made him an ideal assassin. Despite finding a surrogate brother in Rick Grimes, the character is still best-known for being a "deadly lone wolf" type with formidable survival skills and the ability to use a variety of weapons, including his signature crossbow.
We know that Reedus excels at playing characters like this, but if he continues in Disavowed, he may find breaking away from Daryl Dixon a challenge. Actors have reinvented themselves after playing the same character for too long, and playing a drastically different character to Daryl Dixon in a new TV show with an exciting premise might just be the way for Reedus to highlight his potential. It has been confirmed via The Hollywood Reporter that Norman Reedus will be a series regular, so time will tell whether this role is enough to overshadow Daryl Dixon's impressive legacy.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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Norman Reedus
- Birthdate
- January 6, 1969
- Birthplace
- Hollywood, Florida, USA
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