A fight scene got a little too real on the set of The Punisher when lead star Thomas Jane inadvertently stabbed pro wrestler and actor Kevin Nash. In the 2004 film, Nash played the supervillain known as The Russian and had a memorable fight scene in the role with Jane's Frank Castle. The battle ultimately culminates with The Russian's death, as that is what happens to any bad guy who crosses The Punisher.
But there was a major problem on set when Jane and Nash were filming their big scene, which called for The Punisher to stab The Russian. Unfortunately, a stunt coordinator had forgotten to switch out the props, resulting in Jane using an actual blade and stabbing Nash in the collarbone. The good news was that the injury was not life-threatening, but it was horrifying nonetheless, perhaps even more so for Jane than Nash.
In an interview with The Rich Eisen Show, Jane took a moment to reflect back upon that terrifying ordeal. As Jane explains, the worst part of the incident was how calm and casual Nash had been over the whole thing. That only ended up making Jane feel more guilty about the stabbing, and he recalls making amends with some alcoholic beverages after the shoot.
"That was a bad day. I gotta tell you, when I was swinging around, and grabbing the prop knife, and he's there, and I plunge it into his chest... and it stabs him, and it goes in. And I'm looking at the knife, I'm looking at him. Kevin, he's just looking down at me, and there's a knife sticking out of his chest... Yeah, that was rough. And you know what made it worse? He was so nice about it. You're like, 'Oh my god, this guy's going to knock me across the room.' Just out of a reflex. He just sat there, looked at the knife, looked at me, and shook his head. I sent him a couple cases of beer, if I remember right."
Thomas Jane Was a One and Done Punisher
Thomas Jane only starred in one feature film in the role of Frank Castle. The Punisher was followed up with the 2008 film Punisher: War Zone with Ray Stevenson taking over the role. The vigilante has since been reimagined for the small screen with Jon Bernthal playing the Marvel Cinematic Universe's incarnation of Frank Castle in The Punisher, a two-season series that originally premiered on Netflix. Many fans are expecting Bernthal's Punisher to show up in the MCU to join the other Daredevil characters.
While Jane only starred in one film, he did reprise the role for a short film dubbed "Dirty Laundry." In 2020, the actor said he'd be open to doing another film in that role if it was something that the fans wanted.
"That would be a fan thing," he said, per Comicbook.com. "If the fans really wanted me back, and we could find a script. See, I think the Punisher, and the reason why I did the short, was that it hasn't fully been cracked in a way that fully honors the character, Frank Castle, in a film."