The Marvel Cinematic Universe debuted Red Hulk two months ago, causing me to realize that the original Incredible Hulk 2 plan for the character would have been better for him. Red Hulk was one of the many villains of Captain America: Brave New World, with Harrison Ford taking over the role of Thunderbolt Ross from the late William Hurt. Throughout the film. Ross was manipulated by The Leader, another villain first introduced in The Incredible Hulk, with the ending of Captain America: Brave New World transitioning him into the red raging monster from the comics.
What role Red Hulk will have in upcoming MCU movies remains to be seen, but it is unlikely he will appear in more 2025 projects. Moreover, the future of the MCU is set with Avengers: Doomsday‘s story and its sequel, Avengers: Secret Wars, throwing Red Hulk’s future into even more doubt. Although I admit I mostly enjoyed Red Hulk’s inclusion in Captain America: Brave New World, several elements made me wish for the original debut the character was planned to have in The Incredible Hulk 2, be it his Hulk connections or his seeming absence in the coming years.
Captain America: Brave New World’s Red Hulk Debut Was Fun, But Highlighted The Lack Of The Hulk In The Movie & MCU
Red Hulk Would Have Better Served Another MCU Franchise
As I have alluded to, Captain America: Brave New World did well with the character of Red Hulk. In fact, for the most part, Harrison Ford’s Thunderbolt Ross was the most intriguing aspect of the film, as was his connection with Sam Wilson and the politics involved. When Ross began to Hulk out, the film included some fantastic action sequences that made for the most exciting in the overall disappointing MCU movie.
However, despite being the best part of the film, I cannot deny that Red Hulk’s appearance only made the glaring absence of Hulk-related elements more obvious than they already were. This was not aided by the inclusion of The Leader, another of Hulk’s iconic comic book villains. Since 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, a solo Hulk movie has not happened in the MCU due to rights issues, with Captain America: Brave New World sadly highlighting the drawbacks of this. The villains mostly worked, but they only highlighted how Hulk stories have been absent from the franchise.
The Incredible Hulk Director’s Comments About His Plans For Red Hulks Could Have Been Even Bigger For The MCU
And Given The Hulk’s Various Stories A Bigger Spotlight
Image via Marvel Studios
To further rub salt in the wounds, the director of The Incredible Hulk – Louis Leterrier – revealed in 2023 that a sequel to the film would have involved Red Hulk. While he did not go into details, Leterrier told Variety that “There was… Grey Hulk, Red Hulks — there was a lot of good stuff that we were planning.” This was before Marvel opted not to create more Hulk films, given that Universal would take a large cut of the profits and control distribution, with Thunderbolt Ross’ transition into Red Hulk seemingly planned much earlier.
If Red Hulk had been introduced in the early 2010s, at the same time as sequels to the likes of Thor and Captain America had been released, his MCU future could have been even bigger than it is now. Red Hulk could have been a lasting character throughout a potential Hulk trilogy. If Leterrier’s plan to have Red Hulks, plural, had come to fruition, they could even have been antagonists of the Avengers. Regardless of my thoughts on Captain America: Brave New World, I think this MCU story for Red Hulk would have worked better.
