Jon Bernthal's breakout role as Shane Walsh in The Walking Dead was just the beginning of many iconic performances to come. After watching Shane face the undead only to become a walker himself, Bernthal has starred in multiple movies and series over the years, even winning an Emmy for his portrayal of Michael Berzatto in Hulu's The Bear. Now, the iconic actor is heading into one of the biggest months of his career thanks to the release of two highly anticipated films.
Bernthal is set to suit up as the Punisher and share the screen with the wall-crawler in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which will hit theaters on Jul. 31, 2026. But before that day comes, he'll bring King Menelaus to life in Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey—one of the most ambitious depictions of Greek mythology on the big screen, which has been earning stellar reactions. But no matter how many characters Bernthal portrays or how different they may seem at first sight, there's one thing most of them have in common, and it is the repeated use of the line: "Let me tell you something."
Bernthal's iconic phrase has even made it into the video game world. After all, he was the face and voice of Cole Walker in Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Breakpoint, where—you guessed it—his character let us know that he was about to tell us something. Fortunately, the streak isn't ending any time soon.
During an interview with Comic Book Resources, Bernthal revealed that he can't escape his iconic catchphrase, as it has been worked into multiple scripts, including that of The Odyssey:
"I know this is crazy, but [the phrase] is even in the play I'm doing now; it's written there. There's like all these memes all over the internet. I think it started in The Walking Dead because it was sort of in there, and I was like, 'You know, that makes sense for this guy,' so I started throwing it a lot. [Now] you could watch hours of me saying that, but it's in every script. Because then it got built into The Punisher, and I couldn't believe it was in there."
When Bernthal's co-star, Lupita Nyong'o, asked whether the iconic phrase was also written in the script of The Odyssey, he confirmed that it was the case, as his character Menelaus will say the line to Telemachus (Tom Holland).
Bernthal's catchphrase was first popularized due to his portrayal of Shane in The Walking Dead. Despite the fact that Shane was around for only two seasons, he was one of the most memorable characters in the show as a whole.
Years later, audiences still love to hate his relationship with Andrew Lincoln's Rick Grimes and can't get over how shocking his death and transformation into a walker were. Shane's character was so influential that even his catchphrase has been worked into different projects and scripts.
At this rate, it wouldn't be surprising if the Punisher also repeats this iconic line in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Maybe Bernthal can say it to Holland again, making history twice in a row.
Dread it. Run from it. "Let me tell you something" arrives all the same, and we're all in for it.
The Odyssey will be released on Jul. 17, 2026.
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