In a devastating blow to fans of The Jade Giant – or perhaps a thankful one considering the franchise’s current state – Mark Ruffalo has revealed that, according to the words of Kevin Feige himself, Marvel Studios has officially closed the Green Door on The Hulk’s chances of ever starring in another solo film.
This production direction for the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s incarnation of the Green Goliath was first confirmed by Ruffalo during a speaking appearance held at the 2024 Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
Amidst a reflection on his career given to festival attendees in honor of his receiving the event’s America Riviera Award – given to those who the SBIFF board believes have earned an “outstanding achievement in American film” – Ruffalo was at one point pressed by the panel’s host as to whether or not he ever “[got] involved with the scripts” in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, to which the actor confirmed, “Yeah.”
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“I mean, Kevin [Feige]’s like, ‘What would you like to do? What would you do if you had a standalone movie?'” he recalled. “And I said, ‘Well, I’d like to take him from this raging maniac to kind of this integrated character’, and he’s like ‘Okay, we’ll do that over the course of four movies. We’ll never give you a stand alone Hulk, let’s just get that [out of the way]. I don’t mean to burst your bubble – I don’t mean to burst anyone’s bubble, but that’s not happening, so let’s do it over four movies. How’s that sound?”
Pressed “Is that still true?” by his host, the actor chuckled, “As far as I know. I mean, I can talk more about it, but I’ve been told not to.”
The actor then revealed that rather an sort of solo project, his next MCU appearance would instead take place in the upcoming Captain America: Brave New World.
Asked in follow up “But you have Captain America: Brave New World, that’s next right?”, Ruffalo confirmed “Yeah. It’s going to be great.”
As of writing, whether or not Ruffalo will appear in the upcoming The Falcon and the Winter Soldier sequel as just Bruce Banner or also as his green-skinned alter ego, remains unknown.
Further, it also remains unclear just what kind of role, whether leading, supporting, or simply cameo, the actor will have in the film.
Unfortunately for MCU fans both fanatical and jaded, regardless of just what sort of capacity The Hulk appears in, his presence will present both audiences and Captain America: Brave New World‘s writers with one stark reality: However he’s used, it will have to address and canonize the character’s one-episode-and-an-ending-scene-stint in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law – most notably the fact that the founding Avenger now has a similarly-powered cousin and a teenage son.
To this end, with all the reported reshoots and story restructuring the film is currently undertaking, could there be a chance that Tatiana Maslany’s Jennifer Walters makes some sort of appearance in the MCU film to bridge this continuity gap?
Let’s hope not.
Captain America: Brave New World is currently set to glide into theaters on February 14th, 2025.
NEXT: ‘The Incredible Hulk’ Director Louis Leterrier Says The MCU Has Deviated “Very Far” From His Original Vision For The Jade Giant