She-Hulk episode 2 spoilers follow.
With the return of Tim Roth's Abomination, She-Hulk shines a spotlight again on one of the MCU's earlier, near-forgotten films. Yes, we are of course talking about The Incredible Hulk, which was only Marvel's second entry in this ever-expanding universe.
There have been some references before, including William Hurt's return as Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross in Captain America: Civil War. Tim Roth himself also showed up briefly in Shang-Chi, but other key elements like Betty Ross and that big-brained cliffhanger remain conspicuously absent still, 14 years (and 27 films) later.
That's partly down to the fact that Hulk hasn't been given another solo movie to really explore all that since. You can blame pesky legal rights issues for that one.
But there's something else a bit awkward about Hulk's earlier film too, something that the second episode of She-Hulk finally addresses with a knowing wink to the camera. Except, it's not Jen breaking the fourth wall this time. It's Bruce!
While on the phone with She-Hulk, He-Hulk explains that he and the Abomination have resolved their differences ("With haiku," no less). And then he says: "I was a different person back then."
What to Read Next
It's true. Hulk was actually a different person when the pair first clashed, because he was played by Edward Norton instead of Mark Ruffalo.
Think we're reading too much into this? Hulk then adds the word "literally", to really hammer home the fact that this is actually a cheeky nod to one of Marvel's most controversial chapters.
Why was Edward Norton replaced by Mark Ruffalo?
Mark Ruffalo made his smashing debut as Hulk in 2012's Avengers film, but what happened to Edward Norton's version of the character? Why didn't he grow green and rip his shorts onscreen again instead?
The Incredible Hulk only grossed around $265 million worldwide, which is a bit puny compared to other, more recent MCU films. Still, that alone didn't necessitate any kind of recasting.
Instead, rumours surrounding the production itself suggest that there were clashes between Norton and director Louis Leterrier over the final cut, as well as script revisions too.
When it was revealed in July 2010 that Bruce would be recast after The Incredible Hulk, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige shared the following in an official statement to Hitfix (via The Atlantic):
"Our decision is definitely not one based on monetary factors, but instead rooted in the need for an actor who embodies the creativity and collaborative spirit of our other talented cast members.
"The Avengers demands players who thrive working as part of an ensemble, as evidenced by Robert, Chris H, Chris E, Sam, Scarlett, and all of our talented casts. We are looking to announce a name actor who fulfills these requirements, and is passionate about the iconic role in the coming weeks."
According to Norton's team, the move to recast had simply appeared to be a "financial decision" on Marvel's part. That is, until Feige's statement was made public.
Norton's agent quickly responded, describing it as "offensive, misleading" and an "inappropriate attempt to paint our client in a negative light," in an open letter to HitFix, saying: "We know a lot of fans have voiced their public disappointment with this result, but this is no excuse for Feige's mean spirited, accusatory comments.
"Counter to what Kevin implies here, Edward was looking forward to the opportunity to work with Joss [Whedon] and the other actors in the Avengers cast, many of whom are personal friends of his. Feige's statement is unprofessional, disingenuous and clearly defamatory. Mr Norton's talent, tireless work ethic and professional integrity deserve more respect, and so do Marvel's fans."
A few years later, in 2014, Norton opened up about his exit to NPR, saying: "I think that, you know, my feeling was that I experimented and experienced what I wanted to. I really, really enjoyed it...
"Maybe on some unconscious level, I didn't want to have an association with one thing in any way degrade my effectiveness as an actor in characters. I think you can sort of do anything once, but if you do it too many times it can become a suit that's hard to take off in other people's eyes."
If Norton had stuck with Hulk, he wouldn't have been able to complete other overlapping projects like Birdman or Moonrise Kingdom instead, explaining: "Those were more the priority for me."
In that same interview, Norton claimed there were no hard feelings, though, saying: "I continue to be a fan. And I'm really, really happy I got to do it once.
"That particular character I think has a really proud tradition actually of really good actors playing him. And I think I'm really happy to be part of it."
Five years ago, during a chat with The New York Times, Norton shed some new light on his exit, claiming that he "got on great with Kevin Feige".
"I laid out a two-film thing," he recalled. "The origin and then the idea of Hulk as the conscious dreamer, the guy who can handle the trip. And they were like, 'That's what we want!' That wasn't what they wanted. But I had a great time doing it.
"Kevin had an idea of a thing that you could do, and it was remarkable. It [just] didn't happen to be on a tonal, thematic level what I wanted to spend my time doing. Conflating that into a fight or a judgement is grotesque."
Around that time, when Total Film asked Norton if he'd ever reprise the role, the actor said that he was "open to everything".
"Maybe as a baddie?" suggested Norton. "Maybe I'll write my own. I don't know, I'm open to everything. I mean, I did Ask the StoryBots on Netflix."
So could we see Norton in a brand new Marvel role one day? He wouldn't be the first actor to play multiple characters in the MCU. Following Spider-Man: No Way Home, Edward could also return as his own Hulk from another reality, just like Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield did.
Or perhaps Marvel could take a simpler approach and just cast Norton as the Hulk again in an episode of What If...?
Previous episodes have already revisited The Incredible Hulk movie, albeit with Ruffalo's likeness instead of Norton's, so this could be an easy way to reclaim that film as canon, complete with the original MCU Hulk.
Bruce Banner was technically a different person back then, it's true – but wouldn't it be nice to sync everything up without causing a multiversal-sized headache?
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law airs weekly every Thursday on Disney+.
After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.
In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.
David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.
Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends.
As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound.
