Mark Ruffalo Says Ed Norton Never Gave Him Any Feedback on Hulk

Mark Ruffalo debuted in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Marvel’s The Avengers, with Edward Norton having starred as Bruce Banner/The Hulk in The Incredible Hulk. After Ruffalo took over, the actor reportedly didn’t receive any feedback about his performance from his predecessor.

“No, actually, we’ve never really talked about it,” Ruffalo confirmed with The Marvelists. “I was just kinda like, ‘Is this okay?’ and he was like, ‘Man, all’s fair in love and war.’ And planet Hulk and World War Hulk. He never gave me any feedback.”

Having now appeared in four MCU films, it seems as though Ruffalo doesn’t need any advice on how to play the character, with the actor next appearing in the fourth Avengers film.

Hulk has had a complicated big screen history, dating back to 2003’s Hulk.

In that film, Eric Bana starred Bruce Banner, which saw the success of 2000’s X-Men and 2002’s Spider-Man and hoped to capture the public’s attention in a similar capacity. Director Ang Lee explored the inner workings of a man with such a dangerous and fractured psyche as opposed to focusing on the carnage the Hulk could create, resulting in a disappointing reception.

In 2008, Norton starred as the character in a much more straightforward adventure about the scientist and his struggles with his temper, seeking an answer to his horrifying affliction. One of the complicated elements of this film is that Norton requested he be involved in crafting the film’s final cut, an opportunity which he was denied. It was due to these difficulties that Norton parted ways from Marvel Studios ahead of Marvel’s The Avengers.

In 2014, Norton once again addressed the situation and explained how happy he was with the paths that unfolded.

“My feeling was that I experimented and experienced what I wanted to. I really, really enjoyed [The Incredible Hulk],” the actor shared with NPR. “And yet, I looked at the balance of time in life that one spends not only making those sorts of films but then especially putting them out, and the obligations that rightly come with that. There were just a lot of things — I wanted more diversity.”

One behind-the-scenes complication with the character is that, due to previous agreements about distribution rights, Universal Pictures has a connection to the character, which many insiders see as the main reason behind why Hulk hasn’t gotten another solo film while many of the other MCU characters have.

Avengers: Infinity War is on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD now.

Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, and Spider-Man: Far From Home on July 5, 2019.

How do you think Ruffalo’s performance compares to Norton’s? Let us know in the comments below!

[H/T The Marvelists]