Mark Ruffalo reveals what he’d change about Hulk in the MCU
By Eric Bartsch
Mark Ruffalo has one thing he would change about Bruce Banner and Hulk’s arc in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Mark Ruffalo picked up the gamma-irradiated baton from Edward Norton and portrayed the Incredible Hulk starting in Marvel’s The Avengers. The standard-bearer ever since, aspects of how his Hulk-and-Bruce Banner dynamic was handled across five films leave many divided, especially after the green guy wound up with Bruce’s persona.
Certain people (like elder Hulk actor Lou Ferrigno) have problems with the merged Hulk but Ruffalo had something else on his mind he wishes could change. ComicBook.com was in Chicago at C2E2 where Ruffalo was making an appearance and answering fans’ questions as part of a panel discussion. He revealed he would’ve liked to delve deeper into Bruce and Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow as a couple.
“I think I guess I would have liked to have seen Black Widow and Banner give it more of a college try,” the actor said. “That stuff is really good.”
Bruce Banner and Black Widow’s relationship didn’t last very long as it was explored seriously in just one movie — Avengers: Age of Ultron.
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In Avengers: Infinity War, a damper was forced on the romance by a two-year gap and facing the threat of Thanos. In Avengers: Endgame a five-year leap and Bruce merging his brains and brawn into the Smart Hulk added further time and distance between the two. It wasn’t until the mission to undo Thanos’ decimation and Natasha’s sacrifice that her flirtation with Banner held any more dramatic weight.
It didn’t matter as much as he and the Hulk making “peace with each other” or his arm getting messed up, in the end, which is another bone of contention among detractors. That said, Ruffalo also revealed the merged iteration of the hero was part of the plan going back years and he was in on it.
“A few years ago we sat down and kind of plotted out what the Banner/Hulk/Professor arc would be and we pretty much stuck to it starting with Age of Ultron and then ending with Endgame,” he said.
Where Ruffalo’s character goes from here is still being decided but he will be back. He is currently in talks to be part of the She-Hulk series coming to streaming and pitched a Hulk movie that may provide a way to bring Wolverine and those deeply missed mutants into the MCU.
Disney Plus’s She-Hulk does not have a premiere date yet.
And back to that unrequited love interest of Bruce’s: Natasha Romanoff may be dead but she can still have retroactive adventures. Her solo film, Black Widow, is out in May.
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What do you think of Mark Ruffalo’s comments? Is there anything you want to change about Bruce Banner or Black Widow in the MCU? Feel free to leave us a comment.