2011-12 Season Network Rankings: Fox Still On Top But Down, … 
HLN Set To Air Daytime Emmy Awards 
Grant Bowler Cast As Richard Burton Opposite Lindsay Lohan … 
UPDATE: Dish Network And Broadcasters Ask Courts To Decide … 
Cannes Surprise Screening: Change Of Plans On Juan Antonio … 
Kevin Hart In Talks To Join Kevin James In ‘Valet … 
Anthony Hopkins Up For ‘Red 2′ Villain; Can … 
Cannes Conflicted Over ‘The Paperboy’ As … 
RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘American Idol’ Posts … 
Ghost Of 2004 Hovers Over L.A. Screenings As Int’l … 
On The Road To Awards Season? Kerouac Book Finally Makes It … 
Michael Bay’s Name Pushed Paramount To Settle Injured … 
Several More New Series In Recasting Mode; Returning Ones … 
‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation’ Moving To March 2013 To … 
Directors Fortnight Says It Must “Police … 
‘Chronicle’ Helmer Josh Trank Takes On … 
Will ‘Pan Am’ Take Flight With Amazon? 
TOLDJA! ICM Management Buyout Complete 
DESPERATE: HuffPo & Oprah Team Up Now 
Hot Trailer: ‘The Great Gatsby’ 
How Did Women Pilot Writers Fare For 2012? 
EXCLUSIVE: Imagine the Hollywood actor whom you’d least expect to play The Incredible Hulk in The Avengers, and maybe, just maybe, you’d come up with the name of Mark Ruffalo. He’s always been an actor’s actor and is getting critical raves in Focus Features’ The Kids Are All Right which opened last weekend. But I’ve learned that he’s now in late-stage discussions between Marvel and his brand-new agency United Talent to play this key member of The Avengers ensemble. Like Edward Norton, whom he’d be replacing, Ruffalo would bring real chops to the role. But, unlike Edward Norton, he wouldn’t an on-set asshole.
Meanwhile, let me get out of the way that Thor (May 6, 2011) and Captain America (July 22, 2011) will be in 3D. They were filmed in 2D but the plan has been for the visual effects to be rendered in 3D for Captain America while Thor will undergo more of a traditional conversion. Kevin Feige is going to great lengths to ensure this isn’t just a botched rush job. OK, enough with that.
Back to Hulk. Marvel made a pittance of an offer to Edward Norton to continue in the role. But it caught the actor by surprise that the studio decided to replace him altogether with no advance warning.
Seriously? After everything that went on in 2008 when Marvel and Norton were privately and publicly feuding over the remake of The Incredible Hulk. Eventually they settled their issues after clashing over how to cut the $150+ million pic. But what was released was Marvel’s cut of the movie, not Norton’s.
Now remember that Norton was promised big involvement and access after Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel invited the actor into the core team to rewrite Zak Penn’s script. But, in the end, Marvel ignored Norton’s ideas about how to cut the film. Even the film’s director, Louis Leterrier, joined with Norton to lobby for a longer, more detailed, more character-driven film while Marvel Studios wanted a faster, leaner one.
Sure, Norton has a difficult reputation. And he never does a lot of publicity for pics. But, basically, Marvel found him to be a pill. At the same, Marvel’s Davis Maisel acted like a jerk. I always thought that the studio would recast the role. Now they have.
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
Loading ...
Nobody cares about the Hulk…
In two years we’ll be reading about another recasting of this lame superhero role.
Doesn’t matter who plays the part or how it’s written… L A M E.
I’m a big fan of Ruffalo, but why not just bring back Bana? Despite the many flaws in Ang Lee’s Hulk, Eric Bana was arguably the best part of it. I’d like to see him take another stab at the role.
Comic book nerds are the male flip side of Twilight die hards.
love Norton, but he played Banner whiny and inconsolable. It just doesn’t work for a marvel superhero. For the antihero Banner TO work you need him to embrace that dark side. I think Ruffalo will bring that game to the role. Long as Marvel’s wheelhouse doesn’t give the script to some kid scribe too afraid and out of his depth to deliver a compelling story.
who gives a shit, this movie makes no sense and cannot succeed
it will be a huge disaster, mark my words
ED NORTON SMASH!
Ruffalo remains the most overexposed actor ever to walk the earth. Jude Law and Michael Caine have prodigous careers but they have hits and awards to their name.
Ruffalo’s mumbling and shambling grates on the nerves. Why not cast Bana, who’s got kudos and Star Trek to back up his name? This will be yet another straight to DVD comic book flop.
can marvel ever make a film as good as the spider-man/x-men animated series? please, take a chance on writers/directors that actually love and understand the universe and can bring a fresh approach and not just focus on set pieces/CG.
So, THOR will look like crap and CAPTAIN AMERICA will look like half crap? Good to know.
Marvel just got “Ruffalo’ed”….bad bad idea. I’m sure he’s a nice guy but has the charisma of tree bark….and Fake 3D to boot…Can Disney return their Marvel purchase if they kept the receipt??
too cool
Love, Love, LOVE Ruffalo as an actor. Absolutely DON’T see him as Bruce Banner in any way, shape, fashion or form. Do the casting people even know who Bruce Banner is as a character?
And for those who want Bana back, he was great as the man who became the Hulk in Ang Lee’s movie, but he wasn’t Bruce Banner. And he definitely wasn’t a Bruce Banner who washes with the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Any word on who will play The Flash in the Avengers? Being a huge HSM devotee I like Zac Efron,
yeah uh flash is DC not Marvel. Flash was part of the justice league not avengers.
I love hearing all the hyperbole from the people declaring that the Avengers movie will be a flop. Truthfully, there is very little that Marvel could do to prevent it from being a profitable venture at this point. Those with a real business sense for this business know that it will print money, whether it sucks or not. And for every person who comes to Ed Norton’s defense, there are three times as many that have horror stories about him. This really is about his inability to work for other people.
…and I dont care if his difficult or nearly impossible to work with because he is a BRILLIANT actor. so who are you anyway?
The problem with this movie is not Norton or Ruffalo or lack of Mickey Rourke or what have you.
Its Joss Whedon.
A feminist who made Buffy the Vampire Slayer is guaranteed to be a disaster in a guy-oriented film like the Avengers. That he wrote for X-Men only makes it worse, not better. Comics today only appeal to a thin uber-geek, plus-40 age and hard-core liberal fangeek. Think older emo guys and you get the picture.
This movie needs as writer-director someone who can make a masculine, guy-oriented, pulp-energy (not tragically uber-PC and hip and gay-friendly) type of movie. Someone who is Sam Fuller, or John Houston, or Sam Peckinpah. Not someone who is Woody Allen, or Darren Starr.
The movie will live or die on how well the script and directing provide the sort of mid-1960′s, pre-PC era, boys own club, masculine energy and attitude. Downey Jr. will do a good job. So will Ruffalo, and Norton would have too. Most actors are pretty good performers, so you know you’ll get good stuff from them.
Its the script and the direction that will fail. Filled with emo-feminine moments, feminist idiocy, uber-PC stuff, and a total lack of understanding of what makes male hierarchies and teams tick (hint: its not found in Hollywood, Malibu, or other uber-PC and gay/feminized environments).
Avengers failure is absolutely and completely predictable. Because it starts with the writing, and then the directing.
Whedon’s a natural for the next Twilight film, he gets that female-gay environment, or a movie like TV’s Glee. Just about the only worse person Marvel could have gotten would be John Waters, who’d go 100% camp.
Whiskey, Joss Whedon is the next JJ Abrams. Both know how to write and tell stories very well.
Wow. Guess we don’t need to ask your opinion on women.
Ruffalo is the perfect choice for Hulk, it will make his transformation even more intense coming from such a laid back guy. It’s easy to see Bana or Norton go mad but Ruffalo not so much. Bravo to Marvel for not placating Norton.
Edward Norton was great in The Hulk – I thought the movie suffered because it was obviously the studio chopped some minutes from the movie that would have explained things a bit better.
Everyone is talking about the Avengers but I am bummed there will be no Hulk 2 – The Hulk movie set up the sequel perfectly with Tim Blake Nelson as the leader.
Can see Mark as Banner for he seems to have the build as for the hulk. he will be done cgi so Marvel just needs an actor to pull off banner and provide the voice for the Hulk in avengers when he is not Banner as for Ed. Marvel has stated it was not due to money that he got dumped. it was Ed rep for not likeing being part of an ensamble that got him canned. plus wanting to be a perfection for the projects Ed does.
Doesn’t anyone remember how truly AWFUL the Norton “Hulk” movie was? Go watch it again — it blows. It’s not like they’re replacing Al Pacino in “The Godfather.”
I don’t have high hopes for “The Avengers”. If Marvel continues with their style it’s going to be a mess, maybe even a boring mess.
The first “Iron Man” worked because of Downey’s charisma(Bridges was also convincing as the villain) but it had some flaws. I never understood with “The Incredible Hulk” why Marvel would hire Norton as an actor and as a writer if they only wanted a mindless actionmovie and thus cut every scene with prolonged dialogue.
Finally “Iron Man 2″ was just a boring mess overfilled with uninteresting characters and tedious subplots.
And my first impressions of “Thor” (the costumes look absolutely aweful) and “Captain America” (Evans and Johnston…sounds like a turd is brewing) strengthen my bad feelings towards Marvel’s decision-making abilities…
“The Avengers” will make money, but will it make a “Spiderman” fortune or will it make “Wolverine” numbers if the negative Marvel trend continues?
absolutely agree.
I am a huge fan of Edward N, too bad the studio felt he was too difficult. Why not make him also the director? Anyway, I don’t see Mark in this role. He is a one note actor. (Other then in THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT) Edward is sweet, innocent, cool, smart and amazing as the Hulk. I think the studio should rethink their choice and bring Edward back. Don’t make a mistake.
Actually I think that Mark Ruffalo MIGHT be a good casting choice. As to joss Whedon, Clearly you’ve never seen firefly or Serenity, because Nathan Fillion was a perfect man’s man, A no nonsense captain, who held his liquor, held his own in a fight(barely at times), and had amazing onscreen energy with Morena Baccarin, all largely due to the superior writing of Whedon, Therefore i say Give him a chance. Have to say with all these Major releases coming out the one I really want to see, is the Deadpool movie. i really didn’t care much for X-men Origins: Wolverine, but Ryan Reynolds was Amazing. The first 15 minutes were the best that film had to offer(which is why I was so let down by the rest of the movie)
I think marvel has made some great movies lately, but I agree with anyone who says they are being a little stingy.Quit pissing off your fans who’ve supported you over the years.
I feel like Steve Buscemi should at least be offered the part of Bruce Banner.
Wow! I am glad I am not the only one who thought Ironman 2 sucked. Except for the times Mickey Rourke was on the screen, I was falling asleep. The final fight was also too quick. Considering how intelligent both the Starke and [Rourke] characters were, I thought there would be more maneuvering and trying to outsmart the other guy. Rourke went down way too fast. Also, Cheadle looked ridiculous in that outfit- like a little kid playing dress-up.
I do not know much about the Marvel comics per se. That is, I grew up with what I saw on tv in the 70s and 80s. So I won’t say this actor or that should be a character (except Cheadle…don’t need to know anything about Ironman to see he did not fit that role). However, I do see that the movies coming out concerning a lot of super heroes are really bad. We went to the midnight screening of Wolverine and I could not believe how fast it was over. All the way home, my daughter informed me all about Wolverine’s past and I kept asking, “Hey, why didn’t they include that. I think that would have been interesting.” So it seems to me that I agree with what others have said, that the movie will not fail based on one or two actors but on the screenplay and direction. Otherwise, the lucrativeness business of making the Superhero movies is going to dry up real soon. Otherwise, I could see this trend going on for years to come. I hope Marvel and DC choose to make the longterm investment.