Jon Bernthal has practically made a career out of looking like he could ruin your day, then breaking your heart five minutes later. The actor brings raw intensity, physicality, and emotional depth to roles such as Shane Walsh in The Walking Dead and Frank Castle in The Punisher, earning widespread acclaim for his complex, fiercely human performances. His tough-guy image, however, barely contains his range.

So, beneath that permanently battle-ready expression that fans witnessed in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, here are 10 movies that show Bernthal being tough, tender, complicated, and gloriously impossible to ignore.

In King Richard, Jon Bernthal traded his usual bruised-knuckles intensity for something far more unexpected: boundless tennis-coach enthusiasm. As Rick Macci, the eccentric Florida coach who took Venus and Serena Williams under his wing, Bernthal plays a man whose relentless optimism is every bit as formidable as intimidation. His performance earned a SAG Award nomination alongside the film’s acclaimed ensemble.

The transformation went well beyond a mustache and a racket. Bernthal had never played tennis before landing the role, so he trained three to four hours a day, six days a week, while also studying Macci’s coaching style and mannerisms. He even lost around 30 pounds, proving that this particular tough guy was prepared to sweat for the part.

In Wind River, Jon Bernthal turned limited screen time into a remarkably heavy dramatic presence. He played Matt Rayburn, a rugged oil-rig worker whose connection to the film’s central mystery gives the character an importance far greater than his minutes onscreen suggest. Taylor Sheridan specifically sought Bernthal for his ability to combine physical strength, warmth, and vulnerability.

That combination makes Matt instantly compelling without giving away the film’s secrets. Bernthal uses his familiar tough-guy presence differently here, balancing ruggedness with gentleness and fierce loyalty, while the freezing Park City shoot added another layer of physical intensity to his performance.

Jon Bernthal entered Fury looking as though war personally offended him and he intends to complain about it loudly. As Grady Travis, the Sherman tank’s crude, hard-drinking loader, Bernthal fills the cramped machine with swagger, hostility, dark humor, and the unmistakable weariness of a soldier who has seen far too much. He makes the character impossible to ignore.

David Ayer apparently decided that pretending to be exhausted was not exhausting enough, so Bernthal and his co-stars endured a brutal military boot camp before shooting. The actors were pushed into harsh conditions and kept deeply immersed in their roles, helping Bernthal capture the rough camaraderie and psychological strain that make Travis feel like a product of his brutal surroundings.

Jon Bernthal spent much of The Wolf of Wall Street proving that Wall Street is apparently not the most dangerous place in New York. As Brad Bodnick, a neighborhood criminal pulled into Jordan Belfort’s money-laundering operation, Bernthal is all hard stares, short fuses, and barely contained chaos. His scenes with Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill give the financial circus a distinctly street-level threat.

Then comes the parking-lot brawl, where subtlety goes to die. Bernthal reportedly hit Jonah Hill hard enough during one take to dislodge Hill’s prosthetic teeth, while his boxing experience helped shape the character’s physical unpredictability. It is a small role, but Bernthal makes Brad feel like the sort of man who could turn a routine cash exchange into a full-scale emergency.

In Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Jon Bernthal brings Frank Castle back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, dropping The Punisher into Spider-Man’s considerably more colorful corner of New York. As Castle, Bernthal remains brutally uncompromising while serving as a stark ideological counterpoint to Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, creating an intriguing clash between lethal justice and youthful optimism.

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The pairing works especially well because Bernthal and Holland already share a history stretching back to Pilgrimage. While filming the 2015 drama, the actors helped each other record their original Marvel audition tapes, years before they eventually shared the screen as The Punisher and Spider-Man. That familiarity gives their banter a natural rhythm, with Destin Daniel Cretton, who recently announced Naruto's release date, encouraging the duo to improvise.

Jon Bernthal gives The Accountant a jolt of dangerous charisma as Braxton “Brax” Wolff, a highly skilled mercenary who runs a private security operation. While Ben Affleck’s Christian Wolff is controlled, quiet, and methodical, Bernthal plays Braxton with swagger and explosive energy, creating a compelling contrast between two men who are far more closely connected than they initially appear.

Brax is hired to protect a corrupt robotics company and eliminate anyone threatening its financial secrets, putting him directly on Christian’s trail. Bernthal makes the character threatening without sacrificing his mischievous streak, while his chemistry with Affleck becomes particularly effective once their relationship takes an unexpectedly personal turn. Their final confrontation mixes brutal action with surprisingly dark humor.

Jon Bernthal barely appears in The Peanut Butter Falcon, yet his presence quietly shapes the emotional heart of the story. He plays Mark, Tyler’s late older brother, a crabber whose boat and equipment remain behind after his death. Through hazy flashbacks, Bernthal gives Mark warmth and easy affection, making the brothers’ bond feel genuine rather than simply explained.

That loss hangs over Tyler throughout his journey, feeding his grief, guilt, financial troubles, and increasingly reckless choices. Bernthal has only fleeting moments to establish Mark, but he fills them with enough charm and tenderness to make the character linger long after the flashbacks disappear. It is a small performance with an unusually large emotional footprint.

Jon Bernthal turns a seemingly ordinary flirtation into one of Sicario’s most unnerving encounters. He plays Ted, a friendly Phoenix police officer who catches Kate Macer’s attention before his true allegiance comes into focus. Bernthal initially leans into Ted’s easy charm, making the later shift into menace feel all the more sudden and disturbing.

The apartment confrontation gives the actor little room for subtlety and even less room to breathe. Drawing on his boxing background, Bernthal encouraged Emily Blunt to make their physical struggle as realistic as possible, creating a brutal sequence that reportedly left Blunt physically and emotionally exhausted for four nights straight.

Jon Bernthal puts his own spin on corporate charisma in Ford v Ferrari, playing legendary Ford executive Lee Iacocca. Rather than barking orders from the boardroom, Bernthal gives Iacocca an energetic, persuasive presence as the executive who sees racing as Ford’s chance to challenge Ferrari. His performance adds a surprisingly personable spark to the film’s corporate side.

Iacocca becomes an important ally for Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles, quietly pushing against the executives who threaten to interfere with their racing ambitions. Bernthal plays that political maneuvering with confidence and warmth, making Iacocca feel like a man who knows how to sell an idea without becoming another corporate obstacle. It is another neat departure from his tougher screen persona.

Jon Bernthal does not need much screen time to make Baby Driver feel considerably more dangerous. He plays Griff, a cynical bank robber who takes an immediate dislike to the young getaway driver, Baby, and uses intimidation to make his contempt perfectly clear. Bernthal gives the opening heist a jolt of menace, making Griff feel like a genuine threat.

Although Griff disappears from the story after the opening sequence, his presence serves an important purpose: he establishes the ruthless, unpredictable world Baby is trying to escape. Bernthal leans into the rough-edged persona audiences associate with him, but keeps the performance sharp enough to avoid turning Griff into background muscle. And although he is quite the tough guy here, the movies above prove that from ruthless criminals and battle-hardened soldiers to vulnerable brothers and charismatic coaches, Jon Bernthal’s range reaches far beyond his tough-guy image.

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Which of these Jon Bernthal stories are your favorite? Let us know in the comments!