Marvel almost gave Hulk a lore change as drastic as Smart Hulk as early as Avengers: Age of Ultron. With Hulk’s distribution rights tangled up at Universal, Marvel Studios has developed Hulk’s MCU story across other characters’ titles. But while this strategy has kept Hulk relevant in the MCU, a few significant details have been lost in translation along the way.
Smart Hulk serves as the culmination of Bruce Banner’s struggle with his Hulk alter ego. However, since Hulk’s story doesn’t end with Avengers: Endgame, Smart Hulk has come to represent stagnation for the character. Smart Hulk doesn’t have any internal or external struggle, nor does he contribute much in battle. What’s more, Smart Hulk isn’t a separate identity, which goes against Hulk’s established comic book lore.
Avengers: Age Of Ultron Almost Featured Gray Hulk
The MCU Almost Changed Everything Fans Know About Gray Hulk
In 2015, legendary visual effects company ILM revealed to Wired that “Initially, Hulk was actually planned to turn grey when he’s angry Hulk in the Hulkbuster sequence.” In a previous version of Iron Man’s fight with the Hulk in South Africa, it seems like Scarlet Witch’s manipulation would have caused Hulk’s skin to change color as he lost control. In the end, Hulk remained green, though he looked a little pale and was covered in gray dust during the fight.
Gray Hulk would have been the first non-green version of Hulk featured in the MCU, but with a massive change. In Marvel Comics lore, Gray Hulk is a separate individual with more refined intellect, communication skills, and a witty personality. Gray Hulk is considerably weaker than most Hulks, but either crueler or less hostile than Savage Hulk, depending on the situation.
Since Avengers: Age of Ultron was released, Marvel has only explored Smart Hulk as a fusion of Bruce Banner’s mind with Hulk’s body. All other Hulks inside Bruce Banner’s psyche have been ignored so far. Thor: Ragnarok reveals that Hulk became a gladiator champion between the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Thor’s arrival on Sakaar, yet this Hulk seems to be a slightly smarter version of the original, not the entirely separate identity of Green Scar from Marvel Comics’ Planet Hulk
Age Of Ultron’s Gray Hulk Sequence Would Have Changed The Character’s Personality And Power
Gray Hulk Deserves More Than A One-Off Homage
Little information is known about Avengers: Age of Ultron‘s scrapped Gray Hulk transformation, but it’s safe to say that the South Africa fight sequence would have gone largely unchanged. Otherwise, Gray Hulk’s fight with Iron Man would have gone quite differently. An out-of-control Hulk that could only be stopped with the Hulkbuster and destroying part of the city sounds like the opposite of a Gray Hulk battle.
While designs vary drastically across artists and eras, Gray Hulk is often depicted as smaller and more rugged than the traditional Savage Hulk, with less muscle definition, shorter hair, and more brutish facial features. Gray Hulk also becomes Joe Fixit, the cunning nightclub enforcer who uses his superhuman strength as a bouncer. Rather than a massively powerful superhero, Gray Hulk is more of a street-smart tough guy looking for trouble.
The MCU hasn’t explored the rich world of Bruce Banner’s many different Hulks, so burning through them as mere easter eggs would only diminish Hulk’s already limited MCU mythos. The MCU has rushed through many of Hulk’s best moments, including his time as a professional Avenger, his time as Sakaar’s champion, and Bruce Banner’s creation of Smart Hulk. If the MCU isn’t going to focus on Hulk’s different identities, then Marvel should keep them on the back burner for now.
Gray Hulk’s MCU Introduction Would Have Made The Same Mistake As Smart Hulk’s
The MCU Continues To Ignore The Idea Of Different Hulks
In the comics, Professor Hulk is a Hulk identity that merges Bruce Banner’s intellect with Savage Hulk’s power. Although Professor Hulk retains Banner’s memories, he’s a much more confident, and even arrogant, individual who also displays certain traits Gray Hulk is known for. Meanwhile, the MCU’s Smart Hulk is inequivocally just Bruce Banner wearing Hulk’s body. An Avengers: Age of Ultron Gray Hulk skin change would have suffered a similar treatment.
Scarlet Witch’s magical spells in Avengers: Age of Ultron could have led Bruce Banner’s fractured psyche to unleash a new Hulk. This could have set the stage for the introduction of Green Scar and Professor Hulk later on. With that opportunity behind, the MCU could leave this concept intact for future projects that finally explore all Hulks in full depth.
- Release Date
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May 1, 2015
- Runtime
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141 minutes
