The Marvel Anti-Hero Everyone Forgot The Walking Dead's Norman Reedus Played
The worlds of "The Walking Dead" and Marvel have collided before, with several stars from AMC's zombie drama crossing over to the superhero universe, but there's one star with a nearly-forgotten voice role gig for a Marvel animated movie. While still playing Daryl Dixon, Norman Reedus provided the vocals for Frank Castle (the Punisher) in "Iron Man: Rise of Technovore."
In the early 2010s, Marvel and Japanese animation studio Madhouse Inc. teamed up to release four connected anime shows in a 12 episode set: "Iron Man," "Wolverine," "X-Men," and "Blade." After the release of these shows, animated films continued the story. One of these was "Iron Man: Rise of Technovore," which was directed by Hiroshi Hamasaki. Legendary voice actor Matthew Mercer (who also bears the sometimes uncomfortable load of DMing for "Critical Role") takes on Iron Man, while Reedus brings the Punisher to life in the English dub of the film. The pair wind up working together as Tony Stark tries to figure out who seemingly killed War Machine (James C. Mathis III) while uncovering the identity of a mysterious new enemy.
"Iron Man: Rise of Technovore" isn't considered one of the best Marvel animated movies. Out of the four critical reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, only one of them is positive. In terms of the fan reception, just 36% gave the movie a thumbs-up. Some of the audience reviews are brutal, but there was praise for Reedus' Punisher, whom most fans agree should have had an even bigger role in the film.
Norman Reedus was fancast as Ghost Rider for years
Apart from voicing the Punisher, Norman Reedus also played the anti-vampire technician Scud in Guillermo del Toro's "Blade II." However, Scud is a new character created for the 2002 film — not related to any previous hero or villain from Marvel Comics. Meanwhile, though Reedus already has history with the Marvel Universe, fans held onto a glimmer of hope for years that he would play another Marvel anti-hero: Ghost Rider.
For some time, there was a fan campaign to encourage Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios to cast Reedus as Ghost Rider in the Marvel Cinematic Universe — whether it's as Johnny Blaze or Danny Ketch. In fact, even "The Walking Dead" showrunner weighed in on Norman Reedus as Ghost Rider, approving of the dream casting and citing his experience on the show as proof of Reedus' fiery credentials.
Speaking to ComicBook.com in 2021, Reedus revealed that he wanted to play Ghost Rider. "I want a fire skull," he said. "I want my face to turn into a fire skull and whip a chain around. That would be great." Reedus even offered to use one of his 12 motorcycles for the movie if need be. Sadly, it didn't pan out: Ryan Gosling will play the role in "Ghost Rider," set to arrive on July 28, 2028.