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.
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.
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.
Why didn't they make a Hulk movie with Mark Ruffalo?
In a 2024 interview with GQ, Ruffalo stated that it's financially tricky for Marvel Studios to make a Hulk movie, saying that "it's very expensive if you did a whole movie, which is why they use the Hulk so sparingly." As valid and accurate as that statement is, there is also the matter of the Hulk distribution rights.
The REAL Reason Marvel Won't Make A Hulk Sequel (Hulk Rights Explained) | FandomWire Video Essay
Why can't Hulk have a solo movie?
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.
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+.
After the mixed reception to Universal's 2003 film Hulk, Marvel Studios reacquired the rights to the character, though Universal retained distribution rights.
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.
But, as Marvel fans will know, there are 27 total films in the MCU so far, meaning that four are missing. These are the 2008 Incredible Hulk starring Edward Norton, plus the three MCU Spider-Man movies starring Tom Holland—that is, Homecoming, Far From Home and No Way Home.
Despite the confusion over why Morbius is streaming on Disney+ but Spider-Man: No Way Home is not, the answer is fairly simple. While Marvel Studios' Spider-Man movies starring Tom Holland are part of the MCU, the distribution (and thus streaming) rights are held by Sony Pictures.
Watch The Incredible Hulk | Disney+ Bruce Banner finds himself face-to-face with his most formidable foe, the Abomination, when he is forced back into civilization by military masterminds intent on exploiting his powers.
'" 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."
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. Norton clashed with Marvel during the making of the film, with Leterrier saying that the movie's tone was perhaps the biggest point of contention.
Disney (DIS) bought Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion in late 2009, bringing an entire multiverse of IP with them. While some have criticized the quality of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) as of late, there is no debate that the entertainment company has dominated the box office across the globe for many years.
The simple answer? Marvel Studios doesn't own the distribution rights for solo Hulk movies, and they don't want to pay another company to distribute the movies when that company isn't going to be providing any effort in making the movie.
Marvel Studios can make Hulk movies, but a previous deal meant Universal would have first rights for distribution. It's unclear if the Hulk movie distribution rights reverted back to Disney in 2023 or not.
Disney's shares are owned by a mix of insiders, ordinary investors, and institutional investors. Disney's largest individual shareholders are the company's insiders, including the current CEO, Robert Iger, and top managers, such as Brent A. Woodford, Maria Elena Lagomasino, and Mary Barra.
Development on a third Deadpool film began at 20th Century Fox by November 2016, but was placed on hold after the studio was acquired by Disney in March 2019. Control of the character was transferred to Marvel Studios, which began developing a new film with Reynolds.
One of the biggest Marvel names not owned by Disney is Spider-Man. When Disney first acquired Marvel in 2009, Spider-Man wasn't part of the package deal. Sony Pictures had already snagged the film rights to the web-slinger back in 1999, which meant they had full creative control.
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”.
Captain America: Brave New World, as its title states, is not a Hulk movie. Bruce Banner is not set to return for the MCU film — save for a surprise appearance — but despite the story being focused on Sam Wilson, the MCU's new Captain America, multiple Hulk characters will show up in the 2025 movie.
The Hulk Will Return in 'Captain America: Brave New World', Mark Ruffalo Confirms. *Universal, and tbf the rights are only that if Marvel makes a Hulk movie then they get to distribute it. They can't block Hulk from being a main character in another movie so long as that movie isn't called “Hulk”.
