by Mark Ruffalo, who plays the Hulk, made light of Chris Hemsworth‘s most recent MCU appearance as Thor.
Love and Thunder was the most recent movie, and it did not perform as well as Marvel Studios undoubtedly planned.
Admittedly, it didn’t reach the critical lows of Eternals or the more recent Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, but with each passing year, the project appears to be ageing worse and worse with the public.
Even yet, the fourth solo film starring Hemsworth as Thor may have been more successful in terms of box office performance.
The Hulk Insults Thor
In light of the negative reception to Love and Thunder, Mark Ruffalo recently made light of the Thor film series while at Emerald City Comic-Con 2023.
Ruffalo responded with his Thor: Ragnarok co-star Chris Hemsworth when asked which Marvel character he’d love to shoot a buddy-cop movie with. He also joked that he’s “waiting for [Marvel] to invite [him] back to the Thor franchise to save it:”
“I have a soft spot for Chris Hemsworth. So, I keep waiting for them to invite me back to the Thor franchise to save it… That’s a joke… I’m canceled…”
So what about the Hulk‘s actual future? How long will the actor continue to serve as Bruce Banner on the Marvel train?
Ruffalo stated in a recent interview that he would take on the role “as long as they’ll have [him]:”
“I mean, I’ll probably do it as long as they’ll have me, if people are interested, and I can bring something that’s interesting to me to it, and interesting to the fans. But I have no idea. I mean, you know, when you look at the comics, there’s some pretty grizzled, old versions of him. I’m like, OK, the 67-year-old Hulk, that would be interesting — if all of us are still here making movies and there’s a world that allows for us to do that anymore.”
He made particular to emphasise, though, that he “[doesn’t] want to get too far ahead of [himself]:”
“With what we’re living in and heading towards, the future feels more precarious than any other time. So I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself. But I hope I’m still around to do it.”
Another question at Emerald City Comic-Con questioned the star who he would pick from the cast of the MCU to face off against a supervillain in real life.
Scarlett Johansson was Ruffalo’s first option because “she’ll take anyone on and win… even Marvel:”
“Are you trying to get me kicked out of the club? Oh, man. Well, my first choice would probably be Scarlett Johansson, because you don’t wanna mess with her. I mean, she’ll take anyone on and win. Even Marvel. She’s intense. And, Groot? (laughs) I just can’t see a lot of uses for Groot.”
Thor Enjoys the Final Joke
Chris Hemsworth will always come out on top in circumstances like this, in the end.
While Ruffalo has yet to star in a Marvel movie centred around his character, he has four solo films under his belt and is still going strong. Even his fictional cousin Jennifer Walters received attention before him.
A Reddit user has discovered data suggesting that Marvel Studios may actually reclaim the right to make a standalone Hulk movie. There is, however, no official word on if or when Marvel will get those back as of yet.
Another character who can’t now have a solo outing in the MCU is Namor, who has gained fame owing to Tenoch Huerta.
Regarding Bruce Banner’s alter ego, there are rumours that a World War Hulk movie is currently in production, so let’s hope it can actually be made. Without a question, Mark Ruffalo has desired to star in his own movie for a long time.
Disney+ now has Thor: Love and Thunder available for viewing.
