Artisan Pictures and Marvel Studios announced today that Rebecca Romijn-Stamos has been cast opposite Thomas Jane and John Travolta in the upcoming movie event The Punisher, the feature film production of Marvel Comics’ enormously popular comic book series of the same name. No stranger to playing roles in films based on Marvel characters, Romijn-Stamos is noted for her role as mutant superhero Mystique in Marvel’s blockbuster films X-Men and X-2: X-Men United. In The Punisher, Romijn-Stamos will play the role of Joan, the alluring neighbor of Frank Castle with a troubled past who comes into his life after his family is killed. Artisan Pictures President of Production, Richard Saperstein and Marvel Studios’ CEO Avi Arad made the announcement.

Starring Thomas Jane in the title role and John Travolta as lead villain Howard Saint, The Punisher tells the story of FBI undercover agent, Frank Castle, who until now has beat considerable odds. A former Special Forces operative, he is finally moving out of the field and into a desk job – and a normal life with his wife and son. Then Castle’s world is shaken to its core by a nightmare he has long feared: his family is executed as a repercussion from his final undercover assignment. With unparalleled intensity, ferocious intelligence and fearless actions, Castle seeks to punish the murderers – and finds the one thing he least expected: redemption.

The film is being directed by renowned screenwriter Jonathan Hensleigh and produced by Marvel’s Avi Arad (Spider-Man, X-Men, Daredevil, The Hulk) and producer Gale Anne Hurd (The Hulk, Aliens, The Terminator). Principal photography will commence in early July 2003 and the film is scheduled to hit theaters in summer 2004.

Romijn-Stamos is a talented actress who continues to turn in impressive performances in her films. She recently completed shooting Godsend opposite Robert Deniro and Greg Kinnear for Lion’s Gate. This past summer she starred as the mutant superhero Mystique in the Twentieth Century Fox film X-2: X-Men United, the blockbuster sequel to X-Men, which starred Romijn-Stamos in the same role. Additional credits include a starring role opposite Antonio Banderas in Warner Bros.’ Femme Fatale and a role as a futuristic extreme sport competitor in Rollerball for MGM.

The Punisher rises out of the ongoing Artisan and Marvel joint venture designed to develop, produce and distribute Marvel character-based programming across all media with profits generated from each project shared equally after distribution fees are incurred. The Artisan/Marvel joint venture agreement was negotiated by Artisan Entertainment CEO Amir Malin and Marvel’s Avi Arad and currently includes projects for The Punisher and Iron Fist.

“Rebecca is a dynamic addition to the cast of The Punisher,” said Arad. “She is no stranger to the Marvel Universe on screen and will have a chance to showcase her talents in a much different role. We have a great story to tell and a great cast is coming together to match it.”

Commented Artisan’s Saperstein, “Rebecca embodies all of the qualities of this character and we are very excited to have her as part of The Punisher cast.”