While Ruffalo has starred as Hulk in Marvel movies, the rights to the character are actually owned by Universal Pictures, predating Disney's 2009 acquisition of Marvel Studios, which means Universal has the right of first refusal to distribute any stand-alone Hulk movies.
Popular on Variety. “I'd love to do a standalone Hulk, I just don't think that's ever going to happen,” Ruffalo said. “It's very expensive if you did a whole movie, which is why they use the Hulk so sparingly.
'" Ruffalo revealed. "And I said, 'Well, I'd like to take him from this raging maniac to kind of this integrated character. ' And he was like, 'Okay, we'll do that over the course of four movies. We'll never give you a standalone Hulk, let's just get that – I don't mean to burst your bubble… but that's not happening."
However, Gerald Di Pego (writer/executive producer of The Trial of the Incredible Hulk, The Death of the Incredible Hulk, and Revenge of the Incredible Hulk) revealed that the film was canceled before Bixby's health began to decline, owing to disappointing ratings for Death of, and that Banner was to have been revived ...
Why Marvel Couldn't Make A Hulk Movie. The reason why Marvel can't make a Hulk movie is that they don't own the rights to do so. While Marvel owns the film rights to the Hulk franchise, the distribution rights are owned by Universal Pictures, so a Hulk movie can only be made if Universal Pictures puts it out.
This upset the actor, who wanted a more focused look at the Hulk's personal traumas, but Marvel wanted something else. As a result, Norton left the franchise badly and the studio was left without a Hulk until Mark Ruffalo took over the role in 2012, appearing in 'The Avengers'.
While Ruffalo has starred as Hulk in Marvel movies, the rights to the character are actually owned by Universal Pictures, predating Disney's 2009 acquisition of Marvel Studios, which means Universal has the right of first refusal to distribute any stand-alone Hulk movies.
After the mixed reception to Universal's 2003 film Hulk, Marvel Studios reacquired the rights to the character, though Universal retained distribution rights.
“The Incredible Hulk” only grossed $264 million worldwide, a sharp decline from “Iron Man's” $585 million. It's well known by now that Marvel scrapped all the follow-up plans it had for Norton continuing as Hulk. He was later replaced by Mark Ruffalo.
It is commonly known among audiences that the reason for this, per Cinema Blend, is that Norton just did not fit the kind of movie Marvel Studios ultimately intended to make.
Mark Ruffalo reveals that he will return as Bruce Banner/Hulk in 'CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD. ' This video cannot be played. This video cannot be played.
"Tony Stark's story is far from over," Downey said. "Iron Man 4 will explore new dimensions of the character and his legacy through the eyes of Morgan. It's an honor to continue this journey and see where it leads." Feel free to express your thoughts on this exciting project by leaving a comment below.
Ruffalo's most recent appearance as Bruce Banner/The Hulk was in Disney+'s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law in 2022. The series carried an eye-opening expense of $25 million per episode due to the high cost of the titular character's motion capture VFX and suffered production issues due to “half-baked scripts”.
The film was initially released and distributed by Universal on June 13, 2008, and the company held the rights to the title for 15 years. Now, in a notable shift, the rights have reverted to Marvel Studios, leading to the film's release on Disney+.
Here's the thing, though: Every MCU project to feature Ruffalo as the uncontrollable rage monster in the torn purple pants have not been standalone Hulk adventures. Why? Because Universal Pictures still owns the screen rights to the classic character.
So while the MCU's Hulk may never go back to being angry the same way he was before, Bruce has a new set of personal demons to deal with that can have lasting repercussions on the MCU.
The Incredible Hulk was once missing from the Disney Plus library of Marvel Studios projects. However, the Green Goliath's lone solo movie in the MCU is finally premiering on the service. When Disney acquired Marvel, they only got the film and TV rights to characters that Marvel did not already sell to other studios.
Ruffalo said that Marvel Studios' president Kevin Feige confirmed to him that Hulk will never get a standalone film, and the character's development would instead be sprinkled in as subplots in future MCU projects.
In June 2023, the distribution rights to The Incredible Hulk reverted to Marvel and Disney. In 2012, Marvel Entertainment CCO Joe Quesada believed Namor's rights had reverted to Marvel, but Feige said in August 2013 this was not so.
"I'd love to do a standalone Hulk, I just don't think that's ever going to happen,” Ruffalo told the outlet, which noted that the CGI required to create the Hulk on the big screen remains expensive.
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Hulk quit the Avengers as a form of self-sacrifice. He believed himself a threat to everyone, including Black Widow, and he left the team, and Earth. However, in the comics, he made no sacrifice, leaving the team in disgust.
Since Marvel was financing the film this allowed them to use the Hulk in other projects like the planned film The Avengers. Universal retains the right of first refusal to distribute any future solo Hulk movies.
