‘Incredible Hulk’ Actor Undergoes “Physical Transformation” for MCU Return in ‘Captain America 4′

Captain America: Brave New World is shaping up to feature a fair few returning Incredible Hulk stars.

Related: Report: ‘Captain America’ Star To Suffer Heart Attack in Upcoming Movie

Avengers: Endgame (2019) came with the retirement of several of Marvel Studios’ main Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) Avengers. The most major of which included Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man/Tony Stark, who made the ultimate sacrifice for the greater good, and Chris Evans’ Captain America/Steve Rogers, who retired after passing on his iconic Vibranium shield to Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson/Falcon.

Chief among them is undoubtedly Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk/Bruce Banner, whose character arc was undertaken throughout a few key Avengers films during the Infinity Saga. This arc saw Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner struggle with reconciling the two personalities sharing a single body — the intelligent, shy genius of Dr. Bruce Banner and the Incredible Hulk’s more brutish and simple persona.

The Incredible Hulk Stars in Captain America 4

Related: ‘Hulk’ Actor Banned From Appearing in MCU Ever Again

However, Bruce Banner did not start out being played by Ruffalo, despite most Marvel fans being familiar with his portrayal of the character. Instead, the (banned from the MCU) Edward Norton portrayed the first iteration of the MCU’s Hulk in 2008’s Incredible Hulk. This film is often confused with Ang Lee’s Hulk, starring Eric Bana in the titular role — which is not MCU canon.

Now, a familiar face from the Incredible Hulk is set to reappear in the MCU — alongside several other stars from the MCU’s first ever movie.

Fans of the franchise would be pleasantly surprised to hear that Tim Blake Nelson will be returning to the MCU in Captain America: Brave New World (formerly Captain America: New World Order), now seemingly fully realized as the superintelligent baddie from the Marvel Comics, the Leader.

CBM.com recently interviewed the actor whose character Stan Lee and Steve Ditko created to be the Hulk’s archenemy, who claims to have undergone a “physical transformation” for the role.

Nelson talks candidly about how closely he worked with “the Marvel team” and “this wonderful makeup artist named David Atherton with whom [he has] collaborated on a dozen movies now”, in order to recreate what will allegedly be a more “comic accurate” take on the character, unlike the rather toned down look his character had in 2008’s Incredible Hulk.

Interestingly, it appears as if the fourth Captain America movie will feature characters and plot threads directly from the Incredible Hulk.

Tim Blake Nelson appears as Samuel Sterns/the Leader, a cellular biologist granted superhuman intelligence after being exposed to Bruce Banner’s gamma-irradiated blood. Harrison Ford steps into the role of Thaddeus Ross/Thunderbolt Ross from the late William Hurt, now the President of the United States (and likely the Red Hulk), while Liv Tyler returns as Betty Ross, a cellular biologist and Banner’s former girlfriend.

Although Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier, a classic Captain America movie mainstay, appears nowhere on the cast list, the MCU is simply rerouting the supersoldier’s story to the new Thunderbolts movie instead.

With Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige ramping up on the Hulk-centric plots, including the 2022 Disney+ (Disney Plus) series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and the myriad Incredible Hulk plot threads in Cap 4, a World War Hulk solo movie seems more likely than ever.

What do you think of Captain America: Brave New World taking on so many Incredible Hulk characters? What do you think Tim Blake Nelson’s Leader will look like? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

More on Captain America: Brave New World

Alongside the expected cast including the new Captain America, Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America. Danny Ramirez portrays Joaquin Torres a U.S. Air Force lieutenant who takes on the role of Falcon. Carl Lumbly plays Isaiah Bradley, a Korean War veteran and super soldier from Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021), a Disney+ original like Secret Invasion (2023) and Moon Knight (2022).

Shira Haas portrays Sabra, an Israeli superheroine, amidst controversy over potential stereotypical portrayals. Xosha Roquemore, Seth Rollins, and Rosa Salazar have also been cast in undisclosed roles, which could potentially be the Serpent Society — although recent rumors indicate the plot point to be cut.

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