The red-skinned iteration of Hulk was once briefly considered for Avengers: Endgame, according to co-writer Christopher Markus.
“I entertained the idea for about a day,” Markus told Backstory Magazine when asked if Smart Hulk’s (Mark Ruffalo) fleeting red-tinged glow, caused by exposure to the cosmic energies of the six Infinity Stones when performing a snap, indicated Markus and co-writer Stephen McFeely entertained the idea of Red Hulk.
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“Red Hulk is a completely different thing in the comics. It wound up being, well, really we’re just saying he changes color. That’s not a character change. If there’s a future for William Hurt as a superhero, he can turn into Red Hulk.”
In the Marvel Comics, it’s Hulk’s archfoe General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross โ played by Hurt in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, who hassled the Avengers as Secretary of State โ who is endowed with the ability to transform into Red Hulk, a villain created by the A.I.M. and Intelligencia organizations to combat Bruce Banner’s green-skinned Hulk.
There might still be a future for Hulk and his red enemy in the MCU post-Endgame: Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige said in a May Q&A on Reddit star Ruffalo pitched ideas that “would still be cool to see someday.”
“Many years ago, Mark came in for a meeting with us at Marvel Studios to discuss ways in which the Hulk could grow and evolve in upcoming films,” Feige wrote.
“He pitched a lot of cool ideas, some of which led to what you saw in Thor: Ragnarok, Infinity War and Endgame, and some of which would still be cool to see someday.”
For Hurt, who last made a cameo appearance in Endgame as an attendee at the funeral for Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), the star said in 2017 he’d “take a shot” at Red Hulk if Marvel Studios took the character in that direction.
“I don’t know. I wouldn’t mind feeling like I had that much power,” Hurt told The Wall Street Journal. “But I created Thaddeus’ ego with the same size as the monster’s. With the same degree of messed op-ness. I’d take a shot at it.”
Buy or Pre-order Avengers: Endgame:
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