Earth's Mightiest Heroes will finally assemble for the first time in more than half a decade. But given that much time has passed since we last saw them, the team's line-up will be radically different this time around. Not only are fan favorites such as Tony Stark's Iron Man and Natasha Romanoff's Black Widow out of the picture, but new blood has made its way into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as well.
The Fantastic Four, Yelena Belova, Shang-Chi, Namor, and many others will be a part of these big crossovers for the very first time in cinematic history. Audiences are set to witness a very different roster of heroes, but maybe there's still a bit of space left for some of the original Avengers members.
Thanks to the Avengers: Doomsday cast announcement, we know that Thor is set to make a comeback. Furthermore, rumor has it that Chris Evans has a role in the movie, which prompted speculation about Steve Rogers' potential appearance. Robert Downey Jr is, of course, set to be a huge part of the project's story, even if it is as Doctor Doom as opposed to Tony Stark. But what about the remaining members of the original six? Well, luckily for us, one of them will be back as well if a new report is anything to go by.
Mark Ruffalo's Hulk will reportedly appear in Avengers: Doomsday
According to reliable industry insider, Alex Perez, Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner will appear in both Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. While he wasn't a part of the official cast announcement, Kevin Feige mentioned that other characters are still waiting to be revealed, which many took as an indication that the Hulk would be among them. After all, he's been a part of all Avengers movies to date with different levels of protagonism. To have an Avengers project without him would feel quite unusual.
Universal Pictures still owns the rights to the Hulk's stand-alone live-action movies as opposed to Disney. That's why the character hasn't been the star of his own project in the MCU yet, even when he's among the most popular heroes in the franchise. Due to this limitation, Bruce Banner is usually a supporting character in the big crossovers and in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. We don't get many of these team-up projects along the way, which is why an Avengers movie is usually synonymous with a Hulk appearance. Now the only question remaining is: Will we see the return of the destructive monster?
Avengers: Doomsday marked the beginning of a new chapter for almost all of Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Iron Man had a daughter, Hawkeye became a cold-blooded killer, Thor grew depressed and out of shape, and Professor Hulk made its cinematic debut — a change that didn't sit well with long-time fans. Since then, everyone has been asking for the destructive green monster to make a proper (and explosive) comeback.
On a personal note, I'm always a bit wary about how the Russo brothers handle powerful MCU characters. Vision was stabbed and killed in Avengers: Infinity War without getting to put up a fight, and he didn't do much in Captain America: Civil War either. While Doctor Strange had a lot of protagonism in Infinity War, his character spent almost the entirety of Endgame's final act holding off water from entering the battlefield as opposed to stopping Thanos' forces. Hulk had a quick fight with the Mad Titan, and since then, we haven't seen him in all his monstrous glory. Most of the time, the "powerful" heroes get some sort of disadvantage to level the playing field, which could spell disaster for Hulk yet again.
Hopefully, Avengers: Doomsday can do justice to Bruce Banner and set him up for bigger things in the future. After all, anything could happen with incursions on the horizon and the rumored formation of Battleworld. So hopefully, we're on the brink of watching a Planet Hulk storyline unfold in the MCU.
One can only hope.
Avengers: Doomsday will be released on May 1, 2026.