TheMCUkicked off in 2008 with the release ofIron ManandThe Incredible Hulk.Iron Manwas a surprise hit with critics and audiences and became a box office hit that summer which was an impressive accomplishment for a movie based on a lesser-known character.The Incredible Hulkwas released a month afterIron Manand despite being a more popular character, the movie earned half of whatIron Mandid. To this day it is still the lowest-grossing film in the MCU.
Due to the lead character of Bruce Banner being recast from Edward Norton to Mark Ruffalo inThe Avengers,The Incredible Hulkwas positioned as a minor footnote. With Universal Pictures owning the film distribution rights to the Hulk character, Disney and Marvel Studios instead opted to continue the Hulk’s story as a supporting player in other movies like the fourAvengersfilms andThor: Ragnarok,which meant there was no room for the supporting cast ofThe Incredible Hulk. While there were off-hand references to the movie inThe Avengers, as the MCU went on it felt like a forgotten piece of the larger franchise and one people would recommend skipping in an MCU rewatch, as it was deemed unimportant.
Yet over the past few years, Marvel Studios has been sprinkling more elements fromThe Incredible Hulkinto the MCU and Phase 4 has seen those seeds that were planted all those years ago about to take root. This is how the overlooked MCU film has now become an important installment in the future of the franchise.
First Hints of The Incredible Hulk in the MCU
In 2016, eight years after the release ofThe Incredible Hulk,the first cast member from the film returned whenthe great William Hurtreprised his role as General Ross inCaptain America: Civil War. The film established Ross has since gone on to Secretary of Defense and would reappear inAvengers: Infinity War,Avengers: Endgame, andBlack Widow. Interesting, Ross never does share the screen with Bruce Banner or the Hulk again, and with thepassing of William Hurt, it appears they never will.
Then in 2017, Martin Starr appeared as Peter Parker’s teacher Mr. Harrington inSpider-Man: Homecoming. Starr had previously had a cameo inThe Incredible Hulkas a student in the computer lab who Bruce Banner bribes with pizza. Marvel Studios retroactively made that character a younger version of Mr. Harrington, who would later go on to appear inSpider-Man: Far From HomeandSpider-Man: No Way Homeas someone who has a bad habit of appearing in the middle of superhero conflicts.
Related:History of the Hulk in the MCU: From Monster to HeroPhase 4 is when the real signs ofThe Incredible Hulk’simportance would be felt. The first indicator was in the third episode ofWhat If..?titled “What If… the World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?”. The episode shows altered events ofIron Man 2,Thor, andThe Incredible Hulkbut this time with Mark Ruffalo in the Bruce Banner role previously played by Edward Norton. It helped clarify to some viewers that despiteThe Incredible Hulkhaving a different actorplay Bruce Banner, the events of the movie are still canon in the MCU.
The Abomination Has A New Lease On Life
A week after theWhat If…?episode aired,Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Ringsopened in theaters, and audiences saw the return of Emil Blonsky aka The Abomination (Tim Roth) fighting Wong. Abomination showing up in a Shang-Chi movie, a character Abomination has never been associated with, was a surprise for fans and the combination of the Ten Rings connection from Iron Man firmly linked the newest Marvel hero with the studio’s origins.
Fans were also aware that Abomination would return inShe-Hulk: Attorney at Law, and theShang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Ringssequence, was an indicator to audiences of how connected these disparate properties were and offered a hint at what would come. Many expected Abomination to be a hardened criminal, or that the series would involve Jennifer Walters working to free him so that he could join the plannedThunderboltsmovie, the series revealed a surprise. Blonsky andAbomination is changed and reformed, a more mellow person who wants to enjoy his life with his seven soulmates on a property he owns. WhatAbomination’s future in the MCUafter his parole inShe-Hulk: Attorney at Lawis unclear. Possibly he is lying about being reformed, or maybe he truly is, but it is great to see Marvel Studios return to this character and not only give him a new spin but also a possible resolution.
The Leader Makes His Long Awaited Return in the MCU
One of the last dangling plot threads forThe Incredible Hulkwas the fate of Samuel Sterns (Tim Blake Nelson).The Incredible Hulksaw a sample of Bruce Banner’s blood fall into a cut on Stern’s head and start to grow, hinting at his transformation into the iconic Hulk villain The Leader. However since no sequel toThe Incredible Hulkhas been made, this felt like a great potential villain that would be forgotten.
Yet just asAvengers: Infinity Warfinally brought back the Red Skull after a long absence, Marvel Studios is bringing back the Leader. It was recently confirmed that The Leader will be the villain inCaptain America: New World Orderset for release on August 20, 2025, with Nelson reprising his role. By the timeCaptain America: New World Orderhits theaters it will have been 16 years since the release ofThe Incredible Hulk, and shows that even when it appears a plot line has been forgotten, there might be something in the works it just takes time.
Betty Ross and Doc Samson Left Unaccounted For
Bruce Banner, Thunderbolt Ross, Abomination, and The Leader are all set to return to the MCU yet two characters remain unaccounted for: Betty Ross (Live Tyler) and Doctor Leonard Samson (Ty Burrell).
Betty Ross is Bruce Banner’s primary love interest in the comics and has been notably missing in the MCU particularly after Bruce started a romantic relationship with Black Widow inAvengers: Age of Ultron. So far the only appearance of the character was in the previously mentioned episode ofWhat If…?yet Tyler did not reprise her voice. In the comics, Betty has a habit of turning into superpowered characters including an alias known as Harpy and recently the Red She-Hulk. With She-Hulk’s newfound popularity in the MCU, it might be time for Betty Ross to make her return.
Leonard Samson, in the comics, is a superpowered psychiatrist who after gamma irradiation has super strength that is proportionate to the length of his hair. The character appeared inThe Incredible Hulk, with no superpowers, and was the boyfriend of Betty Ross and was played by Ty Burrell a year before he would be cast inModern Family. With so many of the MCU Phase 4 stories likeWandaVision,The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, andMoon Knightso focused on trauma and mental health, it feels like the perfect time to bring Doc Samson into the MCU. With theThunderbolts, he might be the ideal consoler for the team of supervillains who need someone to talk to.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law Is Marvel’s Hulk 2
While Marvel Studios has not released a sequel toThe Incredible Hulk, (perhaps due to a combination of both Hulk movie’s poor box office returns and Universal Studios owning first-look rights on solo films), Marvel Studios has instead decided to shift the focus to a new character: She-Hulk.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Lawin many ways acts asThe Incredible Hulksequel. The series has allowed audiences to get more Bruce Banner, and he has taken on a mentor role for his cousin Jennifer Walters. With the focus now on Jennifer Walters andthe She-Hulk persona, audiences are getting a better look at both her and Bruce’s family life and explore storylines from the Hulk comics, particularly the importance of people trying to get a sample of their blood to make more Hulks.
The Hulk was last seen on a ship heading into space and will likely reappear in a cosmic adventure, be it in anotherGuardians of the Galaxymovie, anEternalssequel, or anotherThormovie, but She-Hulk now appears to be the character filling the Hulk role in theMCU for a potential new Avengers lineup. It is unclear now if the return of the Leader and Abomination, along with She-Hulk’s debut, are signs Marvel issetting up for a new Hulk event; it may just be a way to wrap up these storylines before the big events of the Multiverse Saga accumulate inAvengers: The Kang DynastyandAvengers: Secret Wars.However, it does go to show the strength of the MCU, allowing characters from one film to spin off into various corners of the MCU and provide fresh new spins on these concepts and that these storylines do not need to be wrapped up immediately. For a Hulk fan, it sure is a nice treat and that patience does pay off.
