There's Compelling Evidence Red Hulk IS Coming To The MCU

Warning! This article contains spoilers for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 6.She-Hulk: Attorney At Law episode 6 has provided convincing evidence that Red Hulk will finally be introduced to the MCU. Since the introduction of Thunderbolt Ross in 2008's The Incredible Hulk, many have wondered when the character would return as his alter ego, Red Hulk. When it was confirmed that Ross would appear in Captain America: Civil War, Black Widow, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame, many thought the time was at hand. However, following the tragic passing of William Hurt, Thunderbolt Ross' actor, in 2022, Red Hulk's future in the MCU became even more doubtful.

In fact, many elements introduced in The Incredible Hulk have largely been ignored in the wider MCU up to this point, mainly due to the recasting of Bruce Banner/Hulk from Edward Norton to Mark Ruffalo. With She-Hulk though, Marvel Studios are fully leaning into the connections to The Incredible Hulk, both through reintroducing Emil Blonsky/Abomination to the MCU and the meta references to Bruce's recasting that the show's tone allows. Through She-Hulk, Marvel Studios is finally bringing back many aspects of one of the MCU's first movies, potentially laying the groundwork for Red Hulk.

She-Hulk episode 3 was the first to unveil some evidence around Red Hulk's return through the introduction of the Wrecking Crew being hired by an unknown party to sample She-Hulk's blood. She-Hulk episode 6 only furthered this, with more hints at this series' final villains being the mysterious group that is dead-set on finishing their task. It is through this villainous organization that hints to both future MCU villains, and Red Hulk's MCU introduction, are found.

How She-Hulk's Secret Villains Set Up Red Hulk

She-Hulk’s and the Leader's Intelligencia in the MCU

She-Hulk episode 6 revealed the secret villains behind the attacks on the titular character as the company Intelligencia. In Marvel Comics, Intelligencia is a supervillain group consisting of some of the smartest, yet most evil, minds in the Marvel universe. Two of the more prominent characters of this group in the comics include M.O.D.O.K and the Leader, furthering the MCU's future setup with the former expected to appear in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and the latter in Captain America: New World Order. Despite these links to other MCU villains, Intelligencia is also heavily involved with Red Hulk's comic story.

As part of a plan to conquer Earth, the group contacts Thunderbolt Ross and convinces him to become Red Hulk in order to defeat his nemesis, Bruce Banner. In the MCU's She-Hulk, Intelligencia is slightly different, as its leaders have not yet been disclosed. However, the group and its followers' hatred of She-Hulk and their attempts to steal her blood are what provide evidence of Red Hulk's MCU origins. With She-Hulk already including many Incredible Hulk elements, revealing the Leader to be the mastermind behind Intelligencia would certainly make sense. If this is the case, it would further make sense that he is trying to steal She-Hulk's blood to create a Hulk of his own after his character was shown to covet the Hulk's power in The incredible Hulk. Should Intelligencia succeed, the Leader could create Red Hulk and finally bring the character to the MCU.

Can The MCU Use Red Hulk Without William Hurt?

That being said, Marvel Studios portraying the Red Hulk after the passing of William Hurt is a difficult task. However, there are ways Red Hulk can be introduced without William Hurt. Marvel Studios could opt to recast the role, given how William Hurt has only appeared in minor roles in the MCU since The Incredible Hulk. This, however, does bring about the difficult argument that recasting an actor with a career as extensive as Hurt's is disrespectful to his legacy. Although, if Marvel opts to include Red Hulk without showing his origins, another actor could simply perform the mocap and voice without specifically having to replace Thunderbolt Ross or William Hurt.

Another choice Marvel Studios have is to use another character in his place, as indeed in the comics Robert Maverick also takes on the Red Hulk mantle. Even disregarding this detail, it is clear from the many MCU projects thus far that Marvel Studios are not afraid to change elements of the comics, sometimes in significant ways, meaning they could approach the Red Hulk in entirely fresh ways. One way this could be done is by making the Leader himself become Red Hulk, though that risks changing the comics in arguably the biggest way the MCU has ever done, given Samuel Sterns' main threat comes from his brain rather than brawn.

The fact that suggestions of Red Hulk appearing are in She-Hulk specifically could lead to another possible character being the MCU's Red Hulk. In the comics, Red Hulk is in many ways the antithesis of Hulk, with the same being said for Red She-Hulk and She-Hulk. As of yet, one of the few unrecognized parts of The Incredible Hulk is Liv Tyler's character: Betty Ross. Betty Ross is the daughter of Thunderbolt Ross and is yet to appear in the MCU since 2008. Introducing Red She-Hulk to the MCU in place of Red Hulk in the She-Hulk show would make a lot of sense, and would be just another way the show is revitalizing The Incredible Hulk's stories. Regardless, however the MCU chooses to introduce Red Hulk, the fact remains that She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is providing compelling evidence to the introduction and will hopefully provide answers going into the final stretch of the show.

New episode of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law release every Thursday on Disney+. Want more She-Hulk articles? Check out our essential content below...