The Incredible Hulk (2008)
- To accurately portray their role in The Incredible Hulk, Edward Norton spent weeks conducting hands-on research and rehearsing directly with director Louis Leterrier.
- The Incredible Hulk utilized mostly practical sets and locations to ground the story, a specific choice insisted upon by Louis Leterrier.
The Incredible Hulk is a 2008 American superhero film directed by Louis Leterrier, the second film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Edward Norton stars as Bruce Banner, a scientist on the run from the U.S. military after a gamma radiation experiment transforms him into a massive, uncontrollable green creature whenever his heart rate spikes. Living in hiding in a Brazilian favela and searching for a cure, Banner is discovered by General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, played by William Hurt, who wants to weaponize the Hulk's power.
When a soldier named Emil Blonsky, played by Tim Roth, undergoes his own transformation into the monstrous Abomination, Banner must embrace the Hulk to save New York City. The Incredible Hulk had a notably troubled production, with Edward Norton extensively rewriting the screenplay and clashing with Marvel over the film's final cut β Norton wanted a longer, more character-driven film while Marvel pushed for more action. Norton was ultimately replaced by Mark Ruffalo for subsequent MCU appearances.
Despite the behind-the-scenes tension, the film delivered visceral action sequences, particularly the Hulk's battle with the military on a university campus and the climactic Harlem brawl between Hulk and Abomination. The film earned $264 million worldwide, the lowest gross in the MCU at that time, though it established story elements that would pay off years later. William Hurt's General Ross would return in Captain America: Civil War, and the super-soldier serum that creates the Abomination would connect to broader MCU mythology.
