When the Marvel Cinematic Universe kicked off, it seemed like the Hulk was going to be one of the faces of the franchise. After all, the first Marvel Studios movie to release after Iron Man was The Incredible Hulk, starring Edward Norton as Bruce Banner. Norton bowing out ahead of The Avengers threw a wrench into the plans, but Mark Ruffalo was no slouch. Still, with each subsequent appearance, it felt like the Hulk was getting less relevant. By the time Avengers: Endgame came out, the hero took a back seat in a major way, fusing with his less buff alter ego to form Smart Hulk.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Smart Hulk’s time in the MCU has been lackluster, to say the least. However, Spider-Man: Brand New Day may see the character return to his savage form and cause problems for the Wall-Crawler, which makes one wonder how many other projects he could’ve boosted. Here are three MCU movies that get better if the Hulk is added to the mix.
3) Captain America: Civil War

The Hulk is so relevant to the events in Captain America: Civil War that he’s name-dropped multiple times. The Sokovia Accords threaten to tear the Avengers apart, and when it’s time for Iron Man and Captain America to face off, the former knows life would be easier with his green ally around. Black Widow explains that he wouldn’t be on their side, though, and that’s what makes the idea of Hulk showing up in Civil War so interesting.
While Bruce is usually in Tony Stark’s corner, even during the Ultron fiasco, the idea of a government body controlling the Hulk’s actions is sure to terrify him. Thunderbolt Ross being one of the main backers of the accords is also sure to rub him the wrong way. In the end, Team Iron Man might have to fight off more than a couple of super soldiers and Wanda Maximoff at that airport in Germany.
2) Captain America: Brave New World

No MCU movie has more connections to The Incredible Hulk than Captain America: Brave New World. After President Ross asks Sam Wilson to restart the Avengers, the new Captain America finds himself in the middle of Samuel Sterns’ revenge plot. The villain wants to get back at Ross for holding him captive, but he’s not the only character he should have beef with.
The only reason Sterns become useful to Ross is that his brain evolves after being exposed to Bruce’s blood. If anyone is going to bring the Leader in, it should be the Hulk. It’s also not fair to pit Captain America against the Red Hulk when there’s another Hulk around that is smart enough to take him down with ease and ensure that Washington, DC doesn’t become a wasteland. At the very least, Sam should call his old Avengers ally for advice when fighting against a Hulk.
1) Thor: Love and Thunder

Thor and the Hulk’s relationship in the MCU starts rocky. They don’t get along in the first couple of Avengers movies, but they put their differences aside during the events of Thor: Ragnarok. Bruce agrees to help Thor take down his sister, Hela, who is bringing Asgard to its knees. That task proves easy enough, but Thanos is a whole different animal, with both heroes suffering great losses due to the actions of the Mad Titan during Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Hulk appearing in Thor: Love and Thunder would allow him to heal alongside his good friend, who deals with a new problem when Gorr arrives on the scene. The God Butcher would be a good test for Smart Hulk, who rarely gets to flex his muscles in the MCU. However, where Bruce could really be of help is when Jane Foster dies, leaving Thor heartbroken. While Valkyrie is a great support system, nobody quite understands the God of Thunder like the Hulk, and there is no such thing as having too many friends. Thor is also sure to need help raising Love, and Bruce can teach her about a myriad of topics.
Do you think these MCU movies get better if the Hulk is added to them? What other projects could benefit from having the green monster? Let us know in the comments below!

			






