Why Can’t Marvel Make A Hulk Movie?
Avengers: Doomsday (2026) is just around the corner now, and it is bringing back a significant number of members from the original team who previously signed off (literally) during Avengers: Endgame (2019). Mark Ruffalo’s return as Bruce Banner/The Hulk hasn’t been explicitly confirmed, but all signs are starting to point to ‘yes.’ On the one hand, there is a new credits scene from Avengers Endgame: Encore (2026) that suggests as much. On the other hand, directors Anthony and Joe Russo have almost teased the character’s involvement—in one way, shape, or form—in Avengers: Doomsday.
“I think [what] we could say is, [Banner] is certainly involved in the story that revolves around Doom. We will not confirm nor deny his appearance in Doomsday," Joe Russo told Empire Online. Anthony Russo added a bit more that didn’t really clarify the point: “The farthest we can go is to say, there are characters and actors who have not been announced, who are a part of Doomsday.” The assumption is that Bruce could be an off-screen character who will help move the plot, or he will be one of the many, many characters vying for screen time in Avengers: Doomsday. Either way, questions around Bruce Banner’s involvement in the next Avengers projects emphasize a broader interest in the character that could be (at least partially) satisfied with a new Hulk movie.
There Is a Hulk Movie in the MCU Already - It’s Not Enough
For the longest time, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) didn’t really acknowledge The Incredible Hulk (2008). It introduces one of its key players: Bruce Banner/The Hulk (Edward Norton). Its end credits scene directly ties to the preceding movie—Iron Man (2008). Robert Downey Jr. appears as Tony Stark/Iron Man, teasing the formation of the Avengers. Those choices express an interest in prioritizing Bruce Banner/The Hulk in the MCU’s foundation.
However, by the time that the team forms in The Avengers (2012), so much has changed for Bruce Banner/The Hulk. Most notably, Norton had been recast with Mark Ruffalo. Then, the plot of The Incredible Hulk is summarized in a few lines of exposition. While that helps viewers who may not have seen the solo movie prior to The Avengers, the rest of the movie barely scratches the surface of this character. Despite that, Ruffalo delivers a memorable performance. There’s a reason why “That’s my secret, Captain. I’m always angry,” is one of the movie’s standout lines.
Sadly, this movie starts the rather underwhelming trend with the character’s spaced-out and repetitive storylines that continue in the MCU for the next decade. Whether it's an Avengers movie or Thor: Ragnarok (2017), the MCU didn’t have the time or space to properly explore the complexities of this character as well as it could. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) seemingly tries and fails through a relationship with Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). The change that would significantly help is giving Bruce Banner/The Hulk another independent movie, starring Mark Ruffalo. Instead, he remains with half of the original team—Natasha and Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), who don’t have film trilogies (or more) to their names. That difference is all the more glaring heading into Avengers: Doomsday.
‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Renews Interest in the Hulk
Of course, Clint has the luxury of the Disney+ series Hawkeye (2021), which does a fairly good job of balancing his character with Kate Bishop/Hawkeye (Hailee Steinfeld). The closest the MCU gets to something similar with Bruce is She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022). Bruce’s scenes with his cousin Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany) are interesting and productive, but sadly, that breath-of-fresh-air, female-led comedy series was painfully canceled after a single season. Even so, the point stands: those are limited series, not additional movies.
It seems like Bruce Banner has started to fill a similar spot as Frank Castle/The Punisher (Jon Bernthal) in MCU projects. He is good at playing a supporting role in other people’s stories. Frank does so in Daredevil: Born Again (2025) and Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026). Bruce does the same in the latter. He tries to help Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland) realize that erasing a part of himself isn’t the best path forward. If anyone should know, it’s Bruce, who has struggled with the Hulk side of himself for nearly two decades in the MCU. Mark Ruffalo’s performance makes Bruce’s arc emotionally resonant, especially when Bruce questions if he’s unintentionally hurt anyone. Bruce’s brief, charming, and moving scenes as a supporting character in a Spider-Man movie prove that there is still so much untapped potential.
Imagine what Mark Ruffalo could do with the material of another Hulk movie. Unfortunately, as the Russo Brothers’ comments suggest, it seems like the MCU is still more interested in keeping Bruce in a supporting role. Then again, maybe there is a silver lining in those brief yet consistent appearances in the MCU. So many other MCU characters have seemingly vanished after one or two projects. There may not be another Hulk movie in the MCU’s future, and it may continue to repeat familiar character beats, but at least fans get to see Bruce Banner semi-regularly.
