When the Marvel Cinematic Universe launched in 2008, it was with Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk. The latter was neither a hit nor a flop, but given the tepid response to the reboot and behind-the-scenes issues with actor Edward Norton, it quickly became the franchise's black sheep.
Rights issues with Universal Pictures also came into play and it wasn't until 2022's She-Hulk: Attorney at Law that The Incredible Hulk was referenced in a meaningful way (next up is The Leader's return in Captain America: Brave New World).
We first told you about rumoured plans for a Hulk vs. Wolverine movie in November. Now, reliable leaker @Cryptic4KQual has shared some additional insights into this long-awaited battle and what it could mean for both the Mutant Saga and the rumoured Avengers vs. X-Men movie.
"I'm told the next Hulk-oriented film most likely isn't going to be a [Hulk vs. Wolverine] film," the insider posits. "Instead, Doomsday or Secret Wars will likely plant seeds for it, giving us a small round 1 fight and a full-on brawl later down the line."
"I was told there were talks about a [Hulk vs. Wolverine] film, but it's more likely to happen during the Mutant Saga if they 100% plan to make it. There would also be a deeper reasoning for the fight to take place," he adds. "It wouldn't be a half-assed cash grab just for people to come watch a fight."
That makes sense because even though Wolverine debuted in the comics by battling the Green Goliath, it would be a stretch to turn that clash into a 2-hour movie. It may be a small part of the much bigger World War Hulks movie we told you about earlier today, of course.
Finally, the scooper notes, "This also ties into [Avengers vs. X-Men]. We're probably getting a tease for this in Doomsday or Secret Wars and very much later down the line, we'll get a full scaled [Avengers vs. X-Men] political type war. At least, that's what I'm hearing."
It appears the plan is for the Mutant Saga to build to a full-blown war between the Avengers and X-Men, an event movie which could quite easily rival Secret Wars. While we still expect heroes from Earths-616 and 10005 to come to blows before the Multiverse Saga ends, it's a smart move to save this war for the next Phases of storytelling.
For what it's worth, Jackman has been rooting for this team-up since at least 2014. "There's no doubt he'd get in a fight with Hulk at some point," the actor said at the time. "Those two bad, rage-filled characters are going to square off at some point. It would be quite fun."
"I don't know how much fun to shoot it would be because I'm sure I'd be on the worst end of it, but hey, he can heal."
In 2020, he added, "Wolverine would beat [The Hulk] for sure let’s just be very clear. I don’t know if you know this but The Wolverine actually appeared first in a Hulk comic. He was like a last page, some guy coming so it was The Hulk series he appeared so that’s sort of where that feud came from and then Wolverine sort of took on this whole life so I’m sure The Hulk is very jealous."
Deadpool & Wolverine teased the fight and the next Avengers movies are the most likely place to give Jackman an opportunity to make his dream a reality. Beyond that, we have to believe it will be a new actor who dons the claws for the Mutant Saga's all-new, all-different Logan.
Stay tuned for updates as we have them.