John Pilgrim

“

I was a sinner. But I've been born again. And now I'm with the people who will inherit the earth.

— John Pilgrim

”

A former member of the Aryan Brotherhood, Robert was a violent, short-tempered criminal who seemingly found God when he fell in with the Schultz family, the billionaire owners of Testament Industries, who bailed him out of jail and hired him as their personal hitman. Taking the name "John Pilgrim", Robert became a preacher and fell in love with a woman named Rebecca, starting a family with her while continuing to work jobs for the Schultzes on the side.

John's faith was tested when Rebecca fell ill and lapsed into a coma, and he was forced to leave her and his sons in the care of the Schultzes as he hunted down Amy Bendix, a teenager and criminal who uncovered evidence of Senator David Schultz engaging in a homosexual affair. Pilgrim captured Amy's contact in the Russian mafia, torturing him for information and luring her into a trap that was narrowly foiled by the intervention of Frank Castle, who killed Pilgrim's men and helped Amy escape.

Pursuing Castle and Amy across several states, Pilgrim eventually tracked them back to New York City, where he placed a bounty on their heads while eliminating the Russians aware of David's affair. This bounty brought him back into contact with his old gang, who he was forced to kill after a vicious fight mere hours before learning that Rebecca had died. Reeling from the loss, Pilgrim tried to return home, but was informed by the Schultzes that retreat wasn't an option, with them heavily implying they would kill his sons if he failed them. Pilgrim ramped up his hunt, eventually managing to capture Amy, but he was forced to trade her for David, who Castle captured as an insurance policy.

Letting Amy escape, Pilgrim fought Castle in a brutal fight to find David in which Frank narrowly prevailed, but hesitated in delivering the killing blow when Pilgrim begged Frank to protect his sons. Empathizing with his loss, Castle spared Pilgrim and had him tell the Schultzes that Frank was dead, but Amy was gone, as a cover while the trio worked together to track the Schultzes to their mansion before killing them. His sons safe, Pilgrim renounced his criminal lifestyle and thanked Frank before departing to start a new life.