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One of the early releases of MCU that helped it gain a strong foothold in Hollywood was 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. Actor Edward Norton played the role of the accidental superhero with aplomb. While the movie grossed a moderate worldwide sale of about $265 million, it managed to establish the green monster as one of the initial Avengers.
Four years later, when the first ensemble of the Avengers came forward in the movie The Avengers, viewers were surprised to see Mark Ruffalo playing the Hulk. Since then Ruffalo has been the actor behind the Hulk. However, Norton's Hulk has left a mark in the minds of fans who are left wondering why he left the MCU.
Marvel head Kevin Feige had stated that they needed an actor who could be a team player with other actors in the ensemble. However, Edward’s agents denied these allegations leading to a lot of speculation.
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With Liv Tyler’s Betty Ross slated for a comeback in Captain America: New World Order, it is time for fans to wonder whether Norton’s Hulk may return to MCU. Particularly now that Disney+ is ready to launch the forgotten The Incredible Hulk.
Exploring the reasons behind why Edward Norton left the MCU
Actor Edward Norton and director Louis Leterrier had finalized a 135-minute cut for The Incredible Hulk. However, against their desire and despite friction with the production company, MCU released a 112-minute movie in the theatres. This incident became public. The actor made selective appearances for the movie’s promotion leading to rumors that he was upset with the clash of ideas.
Another inside information is that Edward Norton had a contract to submit a screenplay draft alongside writer Zak Penn, which he did. He also kept improvising his version as the filming and production continued. However, he was not credited as a co-screenwriter, and only Zak was named by the Writers Guild of America.
Marvel Studios president Feige released a statement that the need to replace the actor was not financially motivated but to pull in an actor with a collaborative spirit and creativity. In answer, Norton’s agent hit back by calling the statement offensive, misleading and inappropriate. This could have been one of the reasons behind Marvel and Edward Norton parting ways.
However, the actor stated that he had experienced what he wanted and did not want to degrade his effectiveness by continuing to portray the same character. The Birdman actor has also acknowledged that he shared a good rapport with Mark Ruffalo and would love to return to MCU.
Edward Norton vs Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk
While Leterrier’s initial choice for the green Goliath was Ruffalo, MCU wanted Norton since he was a more renowned name. Mark Ruffalo was connected to serious character roles and had not done any significant lead roles till then. Except for Norton, other Phase 1 actors such as Robert Downey Jr. or Chris Evans did not have the famous tag to them. As such, Marvel Studios was relying on Norton to establish the brand.
Ruffalo admits that he has not had the opportunity to play the Hulk in a solo movie as yet. However, it is undeniable that fans of the successive phases of MCU will remember Mark Ruffalo as the green monster superhero. While Edward brought focus on Bruce Banner’s personal trauma, Mark’s Bruce Banner is an endearing, bumbling, and bashful superhero afraid of his own powers but eager to help.
