Marvel Studios is about to add two long-awaited characters to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Last week, the title and release date for the next Marvel Studios Special Presentation were shared, revealing that Jon Bernthal’s next MCU adventure as Frank Castle/Punisher would be known as The Punisher: One Last Kill. Not much else is known at this time about the Disney+ special, although insider Alex Perez of the Cosmic Circus may have just confirmed who the villain will be, and it’s someone who was first teased in the MCU nine years ago.
Which Marvel characters will appear soon in the MCU?
According to Perez, Ma Gnucci is the antagonist of The Punisher: One Last Kill. The insider confirmed the villain’s inclusion in the special while responding to a fan question on X this past weekend.
Created by writer Garth Ennis and artist Steve Dillon, Ma Gnucci is the ruthless head of the Gnucci Crime Family, a criminal organization first introduced in the MCU in the series premiere of The Punisher, which was released on Netflix in 2017. While no casting has been announced yet for the character, fans have reason to suspect veteran actress Judith Light will be stepping into the role after the actor was believed to have been spotted on the set of the special back in August 2025.
Perez also confirmed that Ghost Rider will appear in one of the upcoming announced MCU movies.
With the Multiverse Saga ending in 2027, Marvel has not yet announced most of the Phase 7 slate, meaning there are not a lot of movies that Ghost Rider could appear in. Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Avengers: Doomsday, and Avengers: Secret Wars are the only MCU movies with release dates, while Armor Wars, Blade, and X-Men are in development. Sequels to Shang-Chi, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps are also reported to be in the works, although they have not been officially announced by Marvel yet.
Of the aforementioned upcoming movies, the best bet for where Ghost Rider will debut is in one of the Avengers movies or in Blade. With the Multiverse still in play, it would be easy for Marvel to introduce a one-off Ghost Rider variant in Secret Wars, or even bring Nicolas Cage back as the Spirit of Vengeance he played in two movies released between 2007 and 2012.
As for Blade, his appearance in the long-gestating movie could set the stage for a Midnight Sons movie, which is rumored to be in the works at Marvel Studios. The Midnight Sons is a superhero team comprised of supernatural characters like Blade, Ghost Rider, Morbius, Elsa Bloodstone, Doctor Strange, Iron Fist, Moon Knight, and Man-Thing, most of whom have already been introduced in the MCU.
The Punisher: One Last Kill will be released on Disney+ on May 12, 2026, while Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars hit theaters on December 18, 2026, and December 17, 2027, respectively.
