One of the most well-known characters ever produced by the renowned Marvel Comics team of writer Stan Lee and illustrator Jack Kirby is Doctor Bruce Banner, popularly known as the Hulk. In 1962, the character made his debut in the comic book The Incredible Hulk.
The character has now undergone multiple media adaptations. We’ll discuss that in more detail later, but first, let’s address the broadest query: How did Bruce Banner acquire the abilities that made him a vengeful green monster?
According to the source material, General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross enlisted Bruce to help develop the Gamma Bomb, a nuclear weapon. Bruce proceeded to a test site to save Rick Jones from the explosion during the first test, which exposed Banner to a great deal of gamma radiation.
In the end, the radiation exposure transformed him into a strong, unpredictable humanoid monster that General Ross dubbed “the Hulk.”
However, Ross enlisted Bruce Banner in the MCU to duplicate a Super Soldier Serum that was applied to Steve Rogers during World War II. Banner tested it on himself, using gamma radiation for Erskine’s vita radiation as an activator. After Banner received a massive dose of gamma radiation, the rest is history.
In comic books, the Hulk has a lengthy and extensive history. The character made his debut in the 1978 television series and several later television movies starring Lou Ferrigno and Bill Bixby.
The first theatrical Hulk film, which was distributed by Universal Pictures and directed by Ang Lee, stars Eric Bana as Bruce Banner in 2003. Five years later, in the Edward Norton film The Incredible Hulk, the character made his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Mark Ruffalo, who made his acting debut in The Avengers in 2012 and is still playing the Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, eventually took Norton’s place.
Gamma Radiation Triggers Banner’s Transformation Into the Hulk
Comic book superheroes’ origin stories are a turning point in their lives, thus when adapting these stories, filmmakers typically follow the same pattern.
We know that Batman’s parents were killed when he was a child, that Spider-Man was bitten by a radioactive spider before his uncle was killed, that Captain America was given the Super Soldier Serum in the 1940s before he was woken up from the ice 70 years later, and that Superman’s home planet was destroyed, so his parents sent him to Earth.
All aficionados of the source material are also familiar with the genesis story of the Hulk. Additionally, the concept of the Hulk’s origin tale persisted despite minor changes made to it in both the 2003 film Hulk and the 2008 film The Incredible Hulk.
Without the gamma radiation, Bruce Banner would never have transformed into the Hulk, regardless of his manifestation.
In 1962, the Hulk made his comic book debut in the inaugural issue of The Incredible Hulk. Dr. Bruce Banner, who is prepared to test his next creation, is the focus of the plot. He was enlisted by General Thunderbolt Ross to create the Gamma Bomb, or “G-bomb,” a nuclear weapon. Ross is told by Banner that the last countdown has started.
While inspecting the explosives on a test site, Banner spots Rick Jones, a teenage boy, in a car. While he goes to retrieve the child from the blasting range, Banner gives his helper Igor instructions to halt the countdown.
Even though Igor is a Soviet agent in secret, he doesn’t halt the countdown. Despite getting Rick Jones to a safe location, Bruce Banner was saturated by the bomb’s gamma rays when it exploded.
That was the comic book origin of the Hulk. But in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the origin of the Hulk was rather different. After 9/11, the US Army hired Thunderbolt Ross to revive Project Rebirth, a government initiative from the 1940s headed by Abraham Erskine, who developed a Super Soldier Serum that ultimately became Steve Rogers the first superhero in history.
Bruce Banner was hired by Ross to work on the project, although Ross didn’t really explain to him that the objective was to replicate Erskine’s serum.
Banner selected gamma radiation over vita radiation, which was employed as an activator and stabilizer on Steve Rogers, since he believed the project’s goal was to create a radiation protection serum to shield soldiers from hazardous irradiated locations.
The serum was eventually developed by Banner and Betty Ross. Banner chose to test the serum on himself because he thought it would shield him from radiation.
Banner sat on the Gamma Ray Projector and increased the dosage of gamma radiation in an attempt to impress General Ross, disregarding Betty’s warnings. This ultimately resulted in a disaster with long-lasting effects.
With General Ross pursuing him, Banner chose to go for a run following the accident, which is what the comic book and the MCU have in common.
Will Banner Ever Reprise His Role as the Original Hulk in the MCU?
Even when Edward Norton was replaced by Mark Ruffalo, the MCU faithful kept up with Bruce Banner’s path. Although Universal Pictures distributed earlier Hulk films, Disney’s Marvel Studios chose to expand Hulk’s persona through crossover films, so it’s unclear if Ruffalo will ever get the opportunity to play the Hulk in a standalone film.
The majority of fans, however, disagree with the direction the authors have gone with the Hulk.
In Avengers: Endgame, Bruce Banner chose to resume his studies on gamma radiation after the Hulk repeatedly declined to engage Thanos and his army during Infinity War. Eventually, he produced a hybrid between himself and the Hulk that retained both his intelligence and the Hulk’s might.
Bruce, now known as Professor Hulk or Smart Hulk, returned to the Avengers during their time heist in order to restore half of the universe that Thanos destroyed. Fans disliked Smart Hulk because it appeared uncharacteristic to see Hulk so calm and wearing glasses, despite the fact that it combined Banner’s intelligence with Hulk’s strength.
After the Infinity Saga ended, Ruffalo remained in the MCU to play Bruce Banner. He returned to the role as a Smart Hulk in the She-Hulk series on Disney+. We genuinely share the expectations of certain fans that Banner would be forced to bring back the old, irate Hulk in a crossover appearance or a new Hulk film.
We don’t know what Kevin Feige and the writers have in store for Hulk’s character growth in the MCU’s future, so that’s simply a fan’s dream and a theory. We can only wait and hope for the best because we don’t know how long Ruffalo has chosen to stay.
When Ruffalo will return to the MCU as Bruce Banner is uncertain. However, Liv Tyler and Tim Blake Nelson, who starred in The Incredible Hulk, will return to their roles as Betty Ross and Samuel Sterns in the upcoming Captain America: New World Order, which will feature Anthony Mackie.
Harrison Ford, who was chosen to play Thaddeus Thunderbolt Ross following the death of the character’s original actor William Hurt, will also feature in the next Thunderbolts film and New World Order. These two films are scheduled for release in 2024. At the very least, we want to see Bruce Banner in the next Avengers films.
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