When it was revealed that
The Incredible Hulk's Ed Norton would not return for
The Avengers, the hunt for a new Bruce Banner began. However, both Marvel Studios and the director of the superhero ensemble had one particular actor in mind.
"Mark was my dream choice and I had my heart set on him," reveals
Joss Whedon.
"I wanted a completely fresh take on the character so I went to Marvel very early on and said, ‘I know the guy who would be a great Bruce Banner’ and they said, ‘Unless it’s Mark Ruffalo, we really don’t know.’ and I was like ‘What?!’ I just froze and said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding. You did not just say that,’ and I showed them my list that I had in my wallet with his name at the top and they were completely on board."
"’The Avengers”’ isn’t the type film that I’ve done in the past or that I am usually invited to do," laughs
Mark Ruffalo.
"I was a little nervous about it because when Joss and I first met about the role there wasn’t a script. I thought a lot about Iron Man. I thought about what Robert Downey Jr. did with that part—he is one of my hero actors. I really loved what Robert did; he reinvented the genre. It made me feel like I could fit into that world with whatever it is I do. I had one meeting with Joss, who I liked instantly, so between him and Robert I was in." He adds,
"What appealed to both Joss and I about the character is that he would have a common man sort of feel to him and possess this world-weary charm. We also agreed he should have a sense of humor about his situation. Based on the last incarnation of The Incredible Hulk, there was the promise that Banner may actually have a little control over the Behemoth. We wanted him to be fun and interesting as Banner and awesome as Hulk.”"
The actor comparing the role to, "this generation's Hamlet" is something we have heard countless times since it was revealed that he would play Bruce Banner at the 2010 San Diego Comic Con. Executive producer
Jeremey Latcham had this to say about exactly that.
"Mark Ruffalo is very funny and when he first got cast he said, ‘Bruce Banner is like his generation’s Hamlet. Everyone has to take a shot at it; it’s just required reading now for actors. I thought it was a funny way of looking at it because it really is a tough character and there have been a lot of great actors who have had a go at it. Mark really brings a lot of humanity to Bruce Banner and I think that his way into it is really to explore the human side of the character, who is a nice guy but very troubled."
"Besides Robert, Mark is probably the person I spent the most time with in pre-production," reveals Joss Whedon.
"We talked about anger and how it manifests so we could get The Hulk away from being this roaring creature. Bruce Banner has given up on the idea that he can cure his anger problems and is just trying to manage it and focus all his energy on helping other people. He doesn’t want to be the center of attention and of course, he becomes the center of attention when he joins the team." As for where we find Bruce at the beginning of the film, Ruffalo reveals:
"Joss and I thought it would be cool if we found Banner at a leprosy colony in India where there’s so much suffering that it would be almost impossible to get angry at anything in life that would bring on the transformation into The Hulk."
•Kevin Feige, Joss Whedon and Robert Downey Jr. Discuss MARVEL'S THE AVENGERS
•The Cast Of MARVEL'S THE AVENGERS Discuss Their Characters In The Superhero Ensemble
•Kevin Feige Describes THE AVENGERS As Being From Nick Fury's Point Of View
•Joss Whedon, Cobie Smulders And More Comment On Maria Hill's Place In THE AVENGERS
•Robert Downey Jr.: "If Steve Rogers And Tony Stark’s Relationship Doesn't Work, Then THE AVENGERS Doesn’t Work"
•Joss Whedon Describes Agent Coulson's "Man Crush" On Captain America In THE AVENGERS
•Robert Downey Jr. And Gwyneth Paltrow On The Return Of Pepper Potts In THE AVENGERS
•Joss Whedon And Chris Evans Discuss The First Day Of Shooting THE AVENGERS
•Joss Whedon And Jeremy Latcham On The Challenges Of Writing THE AVENGERS
•Stellan Skarsgård And Patricia Whitcher On Bringing Back Erik Selvig For THE AVENGERS
•Tom Hiddleston Talks Stunt Training And Loki's Battle With Thor On Stark Tower
•Joss Whedon, Scarlett Johansson And Samuel L. Jackson Talk Black Widow
•Chris Hemsworth And Kevin Feige Talk THE AVENGERS; Reveal How Thor Returns To Earth
•Kevin Feige And Louis D'Esposito On S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Role In THE AVENGERS
•The Cast And Crew Of THE AVENGERS Discuss Assembling On Set For The First Time
•Scarlett Johansson And More Discuss Training For Black Widow's Fight Scenes
STARRING:
Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America
Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man
Chris Hemsworth as Thor
Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton/Hawkeye
Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Ramanoff/Black Widow
Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk
Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury
Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson
Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill
Tom Hiddleston as Loki
RELEASE DATE: April 26th, 2012. (UK) May 4th, 2012. (US)