It’s hard not to enjoy what Marvel has been offering on Netflix. Recently we’ve seen some trailers for Iron Fist, the fourth Marvel series following Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage, which arrives on the streaming platform early next year. That will be followed up by the ensemble series The Defenders, which sees all four titular standalone heroes unite to defeat a yet to be revealed villain, which is rumored to be The Hand.

While all of that is going on, Netflix and Marvel are currently working on The Punisher. At first, it was thought that the Daredevil spinoff series would be released sometime in 2018. But now, it has been confirmed that it will instead be released in 2017. Check out the full story below.

Marvel.com was the first to confirm the news, and announce that five new actors would be joining Daredevil‘s Jon Bernthal, who will be reprising his role as the Punisher, and Deborah Ann Woll.

Other cast members include Ben Barnes who will play Billy Russo (aka Jigsaw), a friend to Castle. Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Micro, a former NSA analyst whose secrets may be of great value to Frank Castle and everyone around them; and Amber Rose Revah as Dinah Madani; a highly trained sophisticated Homeland Security agent who is vexed by the Punisher.

According to the site, Daniel Webber, Jason R. Moore, Paul Schulze, Jaime Ray Newman, and Michael Nathanson will now be joining the two. In addition to that, we also know who they will be playing:

Daniel Webber (“11.22.63″) has been cast as Lewis Walcott, a young veteran who has had a difficult time re-assimilating into Civilian Society.

Jason R. Moore (“A Lonely Place for Dying”) joins as Curtis Hoyle, a friend of Frank Castle’s and one of the few people who knows he is alive.

Paul Schulze (“Nurse Jackie”) will play Rawlins, a high-ranking member of the CIA whose operations in Afghanistan intersect with Frank Castle.

Jaime Ray Newman (“Bates Motel”) plays Sarah Lieberman, Micro’s wife (played by Ebon Moss-Bachrach) whose marriage has made her life far more complicated.

Michael Nathanson (“The Knick,” “Wolf of Wall Street”) has been cast as Sam Stein, a Homeland agent who is challenged by his partnership with Dinah (Amber Rose Revah).

In the comics, Curtis Hoyle is a close friend of Frank Castle, whom he first met during the Vietnam War. Obviously, that will change to make sure it fits with the current narrative. As for Rawlins, he’s a corrupt Central Intelligence Agency officer. The other three are completely new characters created for the series.

Netflix did not give an exact release date for The Punisher, but the streaming site started production on a series for the title character as soon as he gained huge popularity when he appeared in season 2 of Daredevil.

[Source: Marvel]