We love seeing Bruce Banner transform from a genius physicist to the big green Hulk who will Hulk Smash anything and everything on his way. The Avengers’ “That’s my secret Cap, I’m always angry” scene is still fresh in all our minds! However, Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk saw a downward trajectory, starting from Avengers: Infinity War.
While fans were hopeful they would get to see the powerful Avenger Hulk-out and prove to be a massive asset to Earth-616 against Thanos, it sadly wasn’t the case. And then came the Smart Hulk in Avengers: Endgame which was not at all welcomed with open arms by the fandom who have since been complaining that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has immensely nerfed down the Avenger. Even though the Hulk’s downfall is met with looks of disapproval, Mark Ruffalo is standing right by his character as he defends him.
Mark Ruffalo Defends Nerfing The Hulk
Also Read: Marvel’s World War Hulk Movie Reportedly Costing Disney a Gargantuan $10.7 Billion
Sure, comic book characters are usually nerfed down when they are brought to life on the screens. However, what happened with Hulk was nothing short of a disappointment. Appearing at the Emerald City Comic-Con, Mark Ruffalo spoke up for Hulk while giving fans a bit of a teaser into what could’ve been. Bruce Banner had to stay inside the Hulkbuster if he wanted to be of any help to the superheroes since Hulk was not cooperating with him.
Ruffalo revealed that the script of the film initially had Hulk busting out of the Hulkbuster to help save the day. So what stopped that from happening given the fact that that scene alone could’ve been enough to send the audience into a frenzy? Apparently, the creators didn’t want Hulk to be the savior of the day, once again.
“It’s been amazing fun, and really challenging, and always surprising. Even to the point where we were shooting [Avengers:] Infinity War, and Hulk was supposed to come busting out of the Hulkbuster at the end. I don’t know if you know that. And we shot that. We shot it four times and it wasn’t working. And then, we realized that — well, the [Russo] brothers realized — that we couldn’t have Hulk, again, save the day. That we had to have Banner lose without Hulk.”
Ruffalo stated that the scene took a year to shoot before it was finally given up on. He also praised Marvel’s ability to produce content that will make the most impact, stating, “And what Marvel does beautifully is, they’re really looking for is what’s going to have the greatest impact for you guys.”
The Dark Waters actor added that the team decided it’d make a better plotline if a friendship develops between Hulk and Bruce. We don’t know if that was the right idea given the fact that Hulk, one of the most powerful Avengers, almost became a joke in the MCU. He said, “We decided it would be better for the story if Hulk doesn’t show up, and Banner has to somehow try to make friends with him.”
Ruffalo once again praised Marvel stating that the films are “always surprising” in a way that anything can happen, even at the last moment. He also praised Marvel President Kevin Feige for making the films “Lively and exciting” for both the fans and the actors.
Joe Rogan Doesn’t Agree with Mark Ruffalo
Among the many, many fans of the MCU who do not appreciate everything that has been going on with Hulk (Read: She-Hulk: Attorney at Law), is Joe Rogan, the host of a well-known podcast. Robert Downey Jr. joined Rogan in an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience and the two had a discussion about Smart Hulk. Rogan stated that he didn’t get the whole Smart Hulk thing owing to the fact that the superhero has two sides, “…One you can control, one is the genius scientist…one is the beast.” However, Downey was quick to defend the decision stating,
“But after so many times, and again, this is the genius of the people who break and shape stories over there, Feige and his team, they go, ‘He’s Hulk. It’s a big battle. Oh, he’s so conflicted. What if he could meet himself in the middle? And then what corner have we painted ourselves in by having him in the middle?’ Because if that doesn’t work you can’t go back to the way it was, you’ve done it…Or you can go back to the way it was…So I just think that the real genius of the Marvel creative team and the Russo brothers…is they go, ‘We love writing ourselves into a corner. We love it.’ Because then it activates all of those ‘How do we get out of Purgatory juices’ and then you get the next bright idea.”
Well, the Hulk debate is never going to reach a unanimous decision. Fans are upset about almost everything that has happened and there is no way their opinions can be changed unless or until the team decides to bring Hulk out of the mess he is in. Are you Team Hulk or Team Smart Hulk?
Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame are available to stream on Disney+.
Source: Emerald City Comic Con 2023
