The Incredible Hulk MCU Trilogy Finally Explained

The Hulk was the second hero to get an origin story in Marvel's Cinematic Universe. In fact, The Incredible Hulk came out mere months after Robert Downey Jr. made his debut as Tony Stark in Iron Man. Despite his longevity, though, the Big Guy's entire career has been dogged by issues. For instance, Hulk's "other half," Bruce Banner, is one of the only major MCU characters that has needed to be recast. The pair also pretty much had their story retconned in the aftermath of their solo film. And yet, the cinematic one-two punch of Hulk and Bruce Banner has remained a popular fan favorite, and after some significant earlier struggles, the characters have managed to make a comeback over the years.

In fact, whether they were cracking Chitauri skulls in New York City, going toe-to-toe with Thor on the helicarrier, or teaming up with Tony Stark to create Vision, Hulk and Banner have been a popular fixture in the MCU storyline for years. It wasn't until later films like Thor: Ragnarok and the third and fourth Avengers films, though, that the Hulk narrative was really let off the leash, and the effect was sensational. With Avengers: Endgame officially in the books, it's finally possible to trace Hulk's MCU storyline from its shaky beginnings to the triumphant three-story arc that ended in the fourth Avengers film.

The meandering storyline is just the beginning of The Incredible Hulk's problems. Another issue throughout the film is its excessively serious nature, which contrasts starkly against Iron Man's light, witty tone. Edward Norton's version of Bruce Banner is sulky, serious, and depressed. While the character is certainly an improvement over the version seen in Ang Lee's Hulk, which came out half a decade earlier, it just doesn't fit the then-newly minted MCU tone. From the serious conversations to the overall muted colors, the movie feels like it belongs in an entirely different universe than that of Tony Stark.

Another complication that surfaced after the fact was the growing tension between Edward Norton and Marvel Studios. That's not to say that Norton wasn't committed to the role — on the contrary, the Academy Award-nominated actor had brought a lot of vision and depth to the character. But when the rubber hit the road, things just didn't jive well behind the scenes. In the ensuing fallout, the actor and the studio parted ways — not on the most pleasant of terms — and Hulk found himself at a new crossroads.

While his first MCU foray seemed to peter out after one film, Hulk would eventually get a second chance. Distribution rights may have made for tough sledding with a Hulk solo movie, but over the following years, Marvel rehabilitated the Jade Giant by utilizing him as a stellar supporting character. This began with the wise move of casting Mark Ruffalo for the role. The actor instantly won over the hearts of the fans when he arrived on screen. Banner's MCU storyline was also largely reset — he once again didn't get along with Hulk and was clearly scared of letting "the Other Guy" get in the driver seat.

The Banner/Hulk combo made a big splash with audiences in Avengers, leading to the decision to have Banner pop in for a quick "counseling" session with Tony Stark in the post-credits scene for Iron Man 3. The pair showed up again in the second Avengers film, in which they both play a major role in bringing down the apocalyptic threat of Ultron. However, at that point in the franchise, they were still pretty much just supporting players in an ever-growing universe.

It wasn't until 2017 that CinemaBlend reported that Ruffalo and Marvel boss Kevin Feige had sat down to chat about Hulk's future in the MCU. The results of the conversation would change everything yet again — they decided to give him his own "special trilogy."

Hulk's presence throughout Ragnarok is a perfect compliment to Thor's story. And yet, at the same time, it also serves as a vehicle to propel his own story through the first third of its "three-movie-arc." After their electrifying first encounter in the gladiatorial arena, the two friends have a long, enlightening, and downright hilarious conversation that shows a new side to Hulk's character. While he's still very rough around the edges, the Big Guy has clearly matured quite a bit during his tenure on Sakaar.

Over the course of their conversation, Hulk talks in full sentences and reveals his attachment to his new, Banner-free life. Nevertheless, shortly afterward, the pair visit the Quinjet, where a recording of Natasha Romanoff helps Banner regain control for the first time in years. From there, the good doctor joins the newly-minted team of "Revengers" and heads off to Asgard to help Thor unseat Hela.

It's here, on Asgard, that the first portion of the character's "trilogy" concludes. While it's easy to highlight things like Hulk taking on Fenris and jump-smacking Surtur, though, probably the most heroic moment of the entire movie comes when Banner willingly lets Hulk regain control — with no guarantee of ever coming out again — in the name of saving Asgard. The film ends with the character still Hulked out and on the ship with the surviving Asgardians, headed for Earth.

In the lead up to Infinity War, Mark Ruffalo revealed in an interview that Bruce Banner and the Hulk were "headed for a showdown." While the hint seemed to point towards a violent conclusion, the rest of Hulk's three-part story actually ended up playing out in quite an unexpected way. Rather than simply being used as a plot device or to entertain smash-happy viewers, the pivotal moment for Hulk and Banner ended up being relatively quiet. Not only that, but it took place in between Infinity War and Endgame.

When audiences caught up with Hulk again early on in Endgame, they finally ran into "Professor Hulk." The long-awaited union of the two personalities is the result of 18 largely unexplained months in a lab, leading to a Banner/Hulk combo who "wears shirts now."

It's in the humorous diner scene, taking fan photos next to a flabbergasted Ant-Man, that the professor reveals that, after years of treating Hulk as a disease, he has finally come to terms with his superhero counterpart. While the transformative scene was originally meant for Infinity War, it ended up being a perfect way to launch the third and greatest portion of the dynamic duo's (we'll just call them Hulk from now on) three-part arc in Avengers: Endgame.

As Endgame plays out, so does the third and final portion of Hulk's three-part-story arc. Looking back, it's difficult to believe that this is the same character who, just a handful of years earlier, had maintained a successful gladiatorial career a half a galaxy away. By Endgame, Hulk is refined, thoughtful, and caring. He sees his past self smashing his way through New York City and thinks it's "gratuitous."

The Banner part of his intellect also allows the Hulk character to finally interact as a normal adult human being. He's instrumental in convincing Thor to stop sulking and pick up Stormbreaker for another go at Thanos. He's also able to process the loss of Black Widow with the only physical damage from his sorrow being a bench he tosses into the water in grief.

Most important of all, it's Hulk who tracks down the Ancient One and ultimately convinces her to surrender the Time Stone willingly. Consequentially, Hulk is also the only one shown the negative effects that removing the Infinity Stones would have on time. This places the responsibility squarely in his giant green palms to make sure that everything gets put back in place upon their victory — which he very responsibly does.