Ang Lee’s Hulk Had The Perfect MCU Origin Story

Despite its mixed reception and lack of affiliation with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Ang Lee’s Hulk sets up the perfect origin story for the MCU version of the character. The 2003 Hulk standalone film was the first full-scale cinematic adaptation of the Green Goliath, released at a time when a shared cinematic universe full of big-name superheroes was still off the table. To set the movie apart from other blockbusters, director Ang Lee crafted a very emotional story around Bruce Banner’s (Eric Bana) tormented relationship with his monstrous alter ego Hulk and his abusive father David Banner (Nick Nolte).

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Unfortunately, this unusual focus on the psychological aspects of a comic book character didn’t work well with audiences and critics. So, five years later, The Incredible Hulk opted to summarize Bruce Banner’s (Edward Norton) origin as the Hulk as an opening montage sequence. When the time came for Hulk to join his fellow superheroes in The Avengers – this time portrayed by Mark Ruffalo – he became a full-time team player, as Universal’s ownership of the character’s distribution rights makes it difficult for him to have solo movies in the MCU.

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Without the possibility to have a franchise of his own, Mark Ruffalo’s interpretation of Bruce Banner/Hulk as a supporting character does most of the work to fulfill a cohesive character arc throughout the Avengers movies and his appearance in Thor: Ragnarok. That said, his chances to have a solid backstory are still minimal, while most of the Avengers benefit from clear origins inside the MCU and sometimes even their own trilogies. Curiously, Ang Lee’s Hulk could fit perfectly as the missing piece in Hulk’s MCU puzzle.

The MCU’s Daddy Issues Inform Multiple Character Origins

With so many characters and plot threads bouncing around the extensive Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s easy to lose sight of its heavy emphasis on father-child relationships. In fact, several of the most important events in the MCU derive from this theme. Some well-known instances of this are Hela and Loki’s resentment against their father Odin – which cause the obliteration of Asgard and almost destroy New York – as well as Peter Quill and his ill-fated encounter with his estranged father Ego, which almost results in nothing less than the destruction of the universe (though it did result in the sacrifice of Quill’s “daddy” figure Yondu).

Other examples include Tony Stark’s distant relationship with his father Howard, Vision and his will to depart from the evil ways of his creator Ultron, T’Challa’s inherited title of the “Black Panther”, Scott Lang’s unstoppable love for his daughter Cassie, Hank Pym’s shared pain with his daughter Hope after her mother Janet’s death, Nebula’s constant torture by her adoptive father Thanos, and Adrian Toomes’s criminal activity as Vulture to provide for his daughter Liz – just to name a few. All of these relationships have given rise to many of the MCU’s most famous characters.

How Hulk’s Origin Fits The MCU

In Ang Lee’s Hulk, David Banner isn’t a run-of-the-mill villain. He’s actually the reason why Bruce can’t have a normal life. Before his son is even born, David experiments with his DNA in an attempt to create the perfect soldier. So, having transmitted his mutated DNA to his son and murdered his mother in front of him, David Banner has not only created a literal monster, but also an unstoppable rage machine fueled by deep psychological trauma.

In the MCU, Bruce Banner’s main conflict is just having a monstrous alter ego. There’s no thematic resonance in his origin story beyond this duality, and the only hint at his traumatic past lies in the rushed opening sequence of The Incredible Hulk – the least interconnected movie in the franchise. Given that the fate of the universe depended on Thanos’s decision to sacrifice his daughter Gamora in exchange for the Infinity Stones and Tony Stark’s sacrifice to leave a better world for his daughter Morgan, the poignant parental theme in Ang Lee’s Hulk would be a fitting enrichment to Mark Ruffalo’s MCU interpretation. Besides, Hulk’s mysterious MCU past could in some way allow the 2003 movie to take place inside of it.

Key Release Dates
  • Black Widow (2021)Release date: Jul 09, 2021
  • Eternals (2021)Release date: Nov 05, 2021
  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)Release date: Sep 03, 2021
  • Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)Release date: Jul 08, 2022
  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)Release date: May 06, 2022
  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever/Black Panther 2 (2022)Release date: Nov 11, 2022
  • The Marvels/Captain Marvel 2 (2023)Release date: Feb 17, 2023
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