The following contains spoilers for episode 2 of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.If there's one thing Deadpool taught Marvel, it's that audiences will absolutely show up for 4th-wall-breaking meta humor. So when the first 2 episodes of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law prominently featured lead character and crack lawyer Jennifer Walters speaking directly into the camera, it should have been no surprise that the Disney Plus series became an instant hit. But one particular joke got a little more clever than that in She-Hulk episode 2.
It even went as far as to almost directly reference how Bruce Banner/The Hulk used to be played by Edward Norton in 2008's The Incredible Hulk before Mark Ruffalo took over in 2012's The Avengers. Turns out She-Hulk star Ruffalo himself was a big fan of this hilarious moment. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, the actor had some approving words for the decision to finally joke about the "elephant in the room."
Episode 2 of She-Hulk saw Bruce and Jennifer discussing Bruce's past as Jennifer decides whether to represent his old nemesis Tim Roth's The Abomination as a client. "That fight was so many years ago, I'm a completely different person now — literally," Bruce says before Jennifer looks directly at the camera and laughs. It might be a bit subtle, especially for those not familiar with Norton's film, but it was definitely intentional, and Ruffalo was a big fan.
"I think it's really funny. It's just the reality that we all are often dancing around, but it's true," Ruffalo said to EW, before suggesting that Norton seemed fine with it too. "I actually joked with Ed about this. I was like, 'It's like our generation's Hamlet. Everyone's going to get a shot at it.' And there'll probably be another couple before it's all over. People will be like, 'Remember when the Hulk used to look like Mark Ruffalo? Now it looks like Timothée Chalamet.'" That's certainly a pragmatic way to look at things. The scary part is, that it's not even that farfetched to think of Chalamet playing The Hulk.
Ruffalo moved from romantic comedies to action in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so it wouldn't be that out of the ordinary to see such a beloved young actor follow suit. The role itself has changed plenty even since Ruffalo took over, and he knows it. "The cool thing about this world is that it could just be anything," he continued. "Five years from now it could totally morph into anything, whatever's pertinent at the time. I almost see him going back to 'Berserker Hulk' or 'World War Hulk'. It could go anywhere. That's the exciting part — I've played five different versions from beginning to now, and that's kept it interesting for me and I hope interesting for other people."
It's interesting that he would bring that up since he recently said that he's ready for World War Hulk if the studio wants to tackle that storyline. It's almost saddening to think of how it might happen, though, since the comic version of the arc has Hulk seeking revenge on his former allies after being abandoned on another planet. But there's always plenty of wiggle room for changes in the MCU.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law drops new episodes every Thursday on Disney Plus.
Source: Entertainment Weekly